


Love in the Time of Tenacity

by Epicocity



Series: The Ancienverse [15]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime)
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-29
Updated: 2018-03-29
Packaged: 2019-04-14 16:51:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 30
Words: 285,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14140332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Epicocity/pseuds/Epicocity
Summary: Ancienverse Book Six. A month has passed. The Day of Stars approaches, and under the encroaching threat looming over Alola, Ash and all of his friends begin to make their moves. As the curtain begins to close on their newest conflict, each of them is faced with a challenge and choice more personal than before: hope…or despair. Amourshipping





	1. A Reverie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alola! One more time! The time has finally arrived, the one you've (hopefully) been waiting for: that's right, Love in the Time of Tenacity is finally here! As promised, this is the final book of the Alola Trilogy, and one of my final humongous entries into the Ancienverse considering the scope of the trilogy. Ah, why am I talking about this here? We should get into it! When last we left the heroes in Trials they were pretty beaten and split off for a month to do their own things before the Day of Stars was to fall. How will all this conclude? It's finally time to dive into it and find out!
> 
> Author: Epicocity
> 
> Rating: T for violence and innuendo
> 
> Pairings: Amourshipping (for sure), some Laserblade, maybe Snowlilyshipping?
> 
> DISCLAIMER: For the last time, I do not own Pokémon. But please, enjoy the story.

**Love in the Time of Tenacity**

Book Three of the Ancienverse Alola Trilogy

Chapter 1

A Reverie

_Six Years Ago…_

"Ladies and gentlemen," boomed the elderly voice of President Goodshow to the crowd at the reception, "it gives me great pleasure to introduce to you your newest Kalos Champion, Miss Diantha!"

Cameras flashed and popped loudly, the crowd rising in a cheer. Diantha raised her hand, waving at the crowd that had gathered for her rather illustrious ceremony. A smile was on her face, her nerves not budged in the slightest. This was certainly a bigger and grander event than something like a movie premiere, but she was more than used to the occasionally fanatical crowds at those red-carpet events, to the point that this was fairly simple. Behind her, as she walked forward to the vacated podium, were the members of the Elite Four that were under her, challenges in their eyes, especially from the one called Wikstrom. Also, there were various other Champions, including the Sinnoh Champion, Cynthia, and Hoenn Champion, Wallace.

"It gives me great pleasure to accept this lofty station," Diantha finally spoke, the moment she reached the podium. The various members of the press before her quieted down, though there were still a few camera flashes. "As both an actress and a Pokémon trainer, I have always sought to impart that kind of good nature that inspires others to follow in my footsteps, as I believe that is what a true Champion should be able to do at any time.

"To that end, I promise to serve you as your new Champion. To constantly hone my skills, to face my fellow Elite Four members in battle should they call for it, to oversee the Kalos League, and to welcome those winners who reach the stage of competing for the Champion's League. Furthermore, I will endeavor to keep the Kalos region safe from all threats that I can, either by myself, or by working with fellow trainers, such as the other Champions, to do so. That is my promise as your new Champion!"

Diantha's words were met with roaring approval. Of course, it was all simple rhetoric, really. Words that likely any other Champion had spoken at a press conference upon their own inauguration. Being prepared for any role in acting had led her to that very conclusion, studying the various conferences and summits that were available (not that there was very much, if she was honest with herself). Nevertheless, it seemed to have done the trick, and her own elevation to the status of Champion had been readily accepted. To that, she bowed and backed away to join the lofty group which she had now just become a part of.

"Nice speech," Wallace commented. Diantha nodded, but didn't feel like she had much to say. She was the newbie, the baby of this little group, though it didn't seem the Champions were all that close to one another in any case. From those regions that she knew were a part of the League, only two of the remaining four had actually bothered to attend. She'd been told Champion Lance was on business dealing with some special forces group, or perhaps surveilling a rising organization known as Team Blaster…or Blast Off…Something like that. Champion Alder simply hadn't shown.

"You certainly have an eye for politics," Cynthia chuckled to Diantha. The woman accepted the compliment graciously. "I could do without them, honestly."

"Wouldn't that be due to your fascination with ruins?" Wallace chortled, himself. "You and Steven are very similar; though he'd rather not even accept the responsibility of Champion at the present time. I don't look forward to the day he comes to battle me again."

"Steven Stone, you say?" Diantha asked. She was rather intrigued, having never met the man before, but heard many great things about him. Wallace nodded, and she was about to ask more when she felt her arm hooked by Goodshow.

"Come on, Champion Diantha, can't go through your inauguration ceremony without a little mingling," the president nudged her. Diantha smiled, agreeing, and she bid farewell to the Champions that were near to her. They said their own and returned to whatever conversation that they had been having, something about a wealthy businessman named Cyrus.

Diantha was truly surprised by how many important people there were to meet. Certainly, she had to meet with fans that attended her premieres, but those were usually alongside her fellow cast members. In this case, there was a whole slew of people here just for her. She spoke with the man who had commentated her battle with the previous Champion, said commentator's name being Kalas, she believed. Then there was a new up and coming professor that seemed to flirt with her alongside his rather bemused assistant, a young boy with black hair and a Charmander. On top of that, there were just various other people to the point things almost got exhausting.

She held herself well, however, until she and the president began making their way over to an open food table where two men were speaking amicably with one another. Goodshow started to talk to her as they made their way there. "I must admit, the turnout was better than expected. It's rare for a Champion to be crowned so close to another League Conference."

"The Indigo Conference, correct?" Diantha asked. To this, Goodshow nodded, confirming her thoughts. "I suppose Lance is rather busy with all that, then?"

"Not as busy as  _he_  is, but I suppose so," Goodshow laughed a little. He seemed to be sharing a little secret with himself, though it was only for a moment. "Truth be told, he almost lost his position a few months back. We had a strong trainer from another region challenge the Elite Four recently, but he only tied out against Agatha…I think…my memory isn't what it once was, ha ha."

"Don't say that, President Goodshow! We need you sharp as a tack for the future!" called one of the men near the table. Diantha finally turned her gaze to him and the other, much taller man. He was particularly striking in his white coat with a mane of orange hair that made him look like he was on fire. However, the man that had spoken was far more normal, honey blond hair upon his head with a goatee and a pair of glasses sitting upon his nose.

"You flatter me, Michael, but I'm sure the League would continue on without me," Goodshow laughed out as they pulled themselves to a stop near the men. "By this point I just carry the ceremonial torch and attend events like this. You've been the one pulling the weight since you were appointed Vice President."

"Oh, so  _you're_  the Michael I've heard so much of?" Diantha asked. The man turned, surveying her for a moment before smiling.

"I must be," he answered with a laugh, rubbing the back of his head. "Vice President Michael, though just Michael is fine, Champion."

"Pleasure to meet you, then," Diantha said, bowing and taking the man's hand. It was a very firm grip, perhaps a little too firm, but she felt she could get a slight sense of the man's devotion to his passions.

"Likewise; glad I had the opportunity to, given my hectic schedule. Ah, Lysandre, have you met…?"

"Not as yet," the man, Lysandre, spoke. Hearing the name sparked recognition in Diantha's brain and she smiled, shifting her hand over to the other man with kind eyes. "I'm Lysandre."

"Yes, head of Lysandre Labs, correct? Your work on developing the Holo Caster has been most fascinating. How is that project coming along?" Diantha asked. Lysandre seemed to grumble a little, looking not quite so happy as he ought to have regarding his pet project.

"We're still in a prototype phase, I'll admit," the man said, reaching up to stroke his beard. "Though I'm rather apprehensive about making it public, if I'm honest. Some people want it all and refuse to give back…"

"Ah, you'll find your answer. There are many ways to achieve true beauty in a world, am I right?" Michael said with an encouraging smirk, patting the large man on the back. Lysandre nodded, seemingly finding the words emboldening. After another pat, the two men seemed to consider their conversation finished, prompting Lysandre to give a bow to Diantha and walk away, practically running into the young boy that was Sycamore's assistant. He appeared to take a moment to apologize to him, though Diantha didn't linger on that interaction for long.

"So, you're rather busy planning the Indigo League?" Diantha chose to ask of the vice president. Goodshow was suddenly called away, uttering a very hasty goodbye as he departed, and it left the two alone for a moment while the young woman began to gather a plate of food. Michael watched her a minute, almost calculating, before he answered.

"Nah, that work is done. I just have to make sure it all goes smoothly. For some reason, some Kanto League officials got it in their head to make a rule this year where a sleeping Pokémon is considered unable to battle. Baffling," Michael remarked with a roll of his eyes. He raised his wrist at this moment and checked his watch, like he absolutely needed to know the time. Diantha tilted her head, observing the man. "Sorry, I just have a flight to be catching after all this."

"Oh? To where?" Diantha asked, taking some speared ham and chewing on it as she asked.

"Alola," was the answer. Diantha felt she'd heard of the region when it came to movie deals, but she never paid much attention to those sorts of things when it really came down to it. "Yeah, I have some business there. Mostly League related; Goodshow's been trying to get the Kahunas down there to cave into forming a League for years, but they're rather stubborn about their traditions."

"Can't hurt to try, though, I suppose," Diantha pointed out. Michael smiled a little, regarding her through his glasses before chortling a little under his breath.

"Yes, you're right. Who knows? Maybe there'll be some new Kahunas that could make different decisions." Diantha had nothing to say to that and continued eating for a brief moment as those in the reception mingled further. Michael seemed far off, contemplative, but soon righted himself with a light, humorous scoff. "Other than that, it's really just a case of visiting prominent figures for future League backing. The Aether Foundation, for one. They're small, but growing, and I hear they've had a shakeup in management recently that might be more benevolent towards our goals."

"Certainly, sounds like you have it all figured out," Diantha examined, finishing her food and placing her plate back on the table. "Quite the long game you have planned for the League, hm? You must have  _some_  time for breaks."

"Mm, I do," Michael answered, though Diantha wasn't entirely sure which of the two statements he was responding to. "I'm going to be returning home soon, actually. Someone I want to see…By now he must be…"

Michael trailed off here, and Diantha watched him. He seemed to be lost in thought, the corners of his lips turning upwards into a light little smirk. She figured that it must have been a pleasant memory for him, whoever he was thinking of at that time. Eventually, though, he seemed to move on from the thought, adjusting his glasses but slightly as they reflected in the light of the reception hall. "Everything all right?"

"Yes, just fine, just fine," Michael said, running some fingers through his hair. "Well, good to meet you Champion. I'm sure your services will be most inviting in the near future. Take care!" With that, he walked off with a wave, likely to catch his plane to Alola. Diantha wondered if, perhaps, the honey blond would make it that a new Champion from a whole new region would join their ranks, and she pondered on just how much work he seemed to do to the point that he rarely returned home. Passing it off with a miniscule shrug, Diantha moved once more towards the now unoccupied president, pushing Michael from her mind.

If only she had known then.

* * *

_Present Day_

"Diantha! Diantha!" The Kalos Champion stirred at the sound of the voice, calling through to her in the darkness of her closed eyelids. She turned over, her knee knocking against something at the voice, not wanting to awaken herself to its tones. Something pressed on her, and she felt her body moving. "Diantha! Wake up!"

"Mmm…" Diantha groaned, finally opening her eyes and looking up. Standing above her was Kathi Lee, her lips pursed as she looked down at her. The Kalos Champion stretched a little, realizing that she had fallen asleep in a wooden chair at a rather ornate desk. She barely even remembered coming in to her office the night before, that was how exhausted she was. "What time is it?"

"Early enough," Kathi commented tersely. Diantha sat up straight, noticing that she had slumped over sometime during her sleep, and her gaze traveled to the window. Sure enough, it seemed like the sun was beginning to rise on the horizon, creating a beautiful rainbow over the waterfalls. "Are you all right? You were tossing and turning."

"Oh, it was nothing…" she commented, still staring out the window. Once she'd had her fill, her eyes shifted to the stack of papers on her desk. Some of them were based in the logistics of the upcoming Alola League, given she was the only Champion left to do administrative work, while others dealt with other reports and research communiques. Of course, there were also other things, such as construction invoices and other supply orders. Nevertheless, Diantha muttered, "Just a dream. A memory, rather."

"Hmm, well…get your head out of the clouds, Diantha," the woman said, her voice snapping at the Champion. Diantha nodded, fully sitting up now with a light groan and collecting the papers that were strewn across the desk, putting them into neat little piles. "The Alola League is coming up, and it's a big event, especially with the Champions as the acting presidents of the League. Plus, you have a rather busy schedule to-"

"I'm well aware…" Diantha said, finally gathering the last of the papers. Right there on the top was the research that had sent a flurry of activity over the last few days, signed by Steven, Gary and Clemont of all people. Those three names were enough to make orders with certainty. It reminded her of why they were all here.

_Michael_ …It was really no wonder she had dreamed of her first memory with the man that had gone on to betray the League. No, rather, he had  _always_  betrayed the League from the moment he had entered in to their organization with the purpose of toppling them or their way of life. Knowing now that his cold, cruel hand had extended beyond death and still held them…well, she could only imagine how Ash and Serena were feeling if she, herself, felt immense rage.

It made her think on the pair, or rather quartet, of vital trainers that had gone to Alola some time ago. While Clemont had seemed to be in contact with the League, he, himself, had only heard snippets of news about Serena and never mentioned Ash once over the past month. Never in her life had she thought their family would split up, especially with such a tragedy looming on the horizon, and certainly not for so long a time. She supposed it made sense, in the end, though: they were all hard at work to make sure that the tipping point went the way it was supposed to, so Michael couldn't have his posthumous victory.

She did wonder how they were doing, though.

"The, erm, 'delegates' from Alola have also arrived, Diantha," Kathi informed her a little more kindly than before. She figured that her own current state likely informed Kathi's own attitude. She nodded, knowing to just whom the woman was referring. Either way, it was completely fine by her.

"Thank you," the Champion spoke, tousling her hair a little. Looking towards the mirror that happened to sit in the room, she looked herself over and deemed herself well-looking enough to attend her meeting. "Kathi, could you check on…?"

"I'll take care of it and drop you a confirmation," the woman said proudly, puffing her chest out a bit. Diantha smiled and nodded before finally turning away. She skirted around the desk, taking just a few of the papers with her, and she opened the door to stride into the open hallway.

Some janitors in the hallway greeted her, which she returned, while others kept about their works. Diantha rubbed at her eyes, trying to get them wide open as she approached a flight of stairs and clopped down them loudly before turning into the hallway that led to the conference room. She paused a moment, catching glimpse of a door. As she breathed in, she remembered seeing the man that was now the object of her ire exiting from there, talking jovially with some exhaustion. At the time, she commiserated with him, but now…knowing what followed just a couple weeks later, she felt nothing but disdain.

The scourge that kept on giving.

Scoffing through her lips, Diantha continued along for the conference room and pushed open the double doors. It was mostly empty, allowing the sound of the crashing waterfall to be the most prominent in the room. Her eyes flicked over to the stained-glass window, remembering how it had once shattered, before her attention turned to the two scraping chairs and the figures standing up from them. She affixed a smile to her face.

"Kukui, Miss Akela, it's a pleasure," the Champion said, letting the door close behind her. She walked forward, extending her hand outwards. The tanned professor approached first and clasped her hand, shaking it cheerily.

"It feels like it's been a while," Kukui laughed out with a grin. Diantha couldn't return the laugh, a wry smile stretching her lips.

"Or it's just that much has happened," the woman responded. "I mean, that is the reason we've come to meet, is it not? To discuss the Hope Leilani, Lanakila Conference and the Day of Stars, no?"

"The 'Day of Stars'," Akela scoffed out. She reached forward to shake Diantha's hand, but otherwise sat right back down. "Hard to believe six years ago wasn't the end of it."

"Hard to believe six  _months_  ago wasn't the end of it, if I'm honest," Diantha said, sharing the violet-haired woman's sentiments. Akela didn't seem to want to be there, discussing this, either. Rather, she seemed angry about the thought of this "Day of Stars" that had been tracked and watched like a hawk. According to reports from Chi and the scientists at the Hokulani Observatory, nothing had changed in regards to the timing for the last month.

"It's deplorable," Akela spat, her gaze drawn to a random point on the wall. "As if the lives of those that were lost six years ago in the darkness that shrouded Alola weren't enough for it…"

"Now, now, ladies," Kukui said, looking a little mortified about being stuck in the situation, "aren't we here to make sure that nothing horrible happens this time around?"

"Right. Sorry, Kukui," Akela stated, and her eyes sharpened to show she was back in the present, rather than stuck in some point of the past. "So, we are all set for the timing of the Hope Leilani, are we? And our special surprise?"

"We've approved it," Diantha noted, tapping her papers absentmindedly. "Though I do have to wonder why you ask for it now. Nothing like this has ever been done before."

"Aw, come on, Champion Diantha!" Kukui said with a grin, seating himself and folding his hands behind his head as he leaned back. The man looked far too relaxed given the current situation. "It's the first Alola League! And held alongside the Hope Leilani, no less! No better opportunity to make it a celebration!" The Champion's eyebrow quirked upwards in amusement towards the man who eventually chortled under his breath.

"And it will keep Lusamine's eye exactly where we want it to be."

"Easier said than done. We'll need to really keep those making their moves silent to buy as much time as possible without incident," Akela stated. To this, Kukui nodded, his eyes sharp, showcasing the fact that while his attitude was lax, he, himself, was sharper than ever. "Even now, there's no guarantee the initial preemptive strike will do much. Lusamine may not be able to extend her foolish grasp from beyond the Ultra Space, but there's still Team Skull to worry about. They vanished after the battle at Aether a month ago, correct?"

"So the reports have said," Diantha stated. Her eyes flicked over to her stack of papers there, contemplating them carefully, along with the information on their pages. It made sense why Kukui and Akela would ask for what they had, and she supposed it was a rather smart idea. "Tell me, Miss Akela, how aware is the public of what went on at Aether? I understand you were involved in calming the panic that emerged from the Ultra Beasts in Alola."

"For now, they're ignorant, but I doubt that will hold on the Day of Stars," Akela noted, tapping her foot on the leg of the chair. "Using my station, I helped Miss Wicke and the young Gladion to craft a message that it was an experiment with the Aether Turbo gone horribly wrong for what happened at the Foundation. As for the beasts themselves…well, the Tapus dealt with that threat."

"We've been pushing the impending celebrations to distract them. Since nothing seems to have happened since that day, most of the public has quieted down," Kukui said easily. Diantha nodded; at least the League wasn't going to be forced to endure yet another scandal. Lysandre Labs had been a bad enough set of activities that they couldn't very well hush it all up with the public at the time. Aether could have been just as bad of an event, but that seemed to have had a good enough transition for the present. "I'm more worried right now about whether or not the preemptive strike we planned will actually succeed."

"Yes, I'm well aware," Diantha said, offering a light sigh. "As I understand it, the League's researchers on the ground have taken strides to get you all close to the 'Altar of the Sunne'?"

"Yes," was the simplistic answer. Diantha nodded; now it made sense, she felt, though there were still some things to deal with. She leaned forward.

"Professor Kukui, your wife has spent a great deal of time studying the Ultra Space, particularly in this last month, while our researchers have dealt with what is going on surrounding the altar there. There's obviously a connection between the two, but is Burnet aware of any other possible threat that could come from the Ultra Space?" Kukui regarded her a moment, dropping his lazy attitude as his hat slipped down his face just a little, darkening it.

"So far, I'm sure Burnet's research is solid: on the Day of Stars, when the stars all align as they nearly did six years ago, the unstable space holding things closed will break open, ushering in the Ultra Beasts as it did a month ago, only in greater numbers. The only way to stop it would be to go inside and stabilize the space with either the legendary Pokémon, or some other means, like sealing it or something," Kukui explained. Diantha pursed her lips; she already knew all of this information, so she'd no idea why Kukui was sharing this with her now, given it was all a part of their plan. "However, given what occurred in Heahea we have a far greater issue."

"Nihilego," Akela stated. Diantha looked to the papers; if she remembered right, Nihilego was the one that had emerged in Heahea and then again with Lusamine, seeming to have some connection to the crazed woman. "Heahea showcased its true deadly powers: a toxin that lowers inhibitions. The Pokémon that would normally be so peaceful were driven into a frenzy, and I don't mean the normal kind of stampeding frenzy…"

"It was far more organized," was the conclusion. Diantha's hand shifted, tapping her chin lightly; this was certainly an issue, though already a plan had been put in motion to counteract it, and she smiled beneath her hand. "The fear is that there may be more than this singular Nihilego. Already, the Ultra Beasts have shown remarkable capabilities on the level of legendary Pokémon: cutting buildings, pulverizing things, immense speed, absorbing electricity, burning things with a touch…it's frightening. And should Nihilego's toxins get into the head of our fighters, they may start beating upon themselves. Burnet theorizes that the only place it could possibly be negated is the Ultra Space itself, and that's only because it's a blend of realities to begin with, which brings its  _own_  set of problems to the table."

"It would seem, then, that Nihilego would become top priority, should they emerge from the portals," Diantha stated, removing her hand and showing her smile to the other two in the room. She chuckled just a little. "It gives us something of a plan for what to strike first. Reports I received from a month ago indicate that they're best combated by those with Mega Evolution or these Z-Moves, so we'll want to prepare for battle using that."

"Mega Evolution is not exactly commonplace in Alola," Akela stated, her eyes whipping over to Kukui. The man chuckled, rubbing at his wrist, slightly less tanned than the rest of his body in this light, she noticed.

"Oh, I have no fears of that," was the easy answer. She looked away a little while Akela regarded her with a quirked eyebrow. "Don't think I've been sitting here doing administrative work for the last month. The events throughout the world made my own course of action quite plain, indeed."

"Then I guess we'll be set," Kukui said, the easygoing grin back on his face once more. "Ash and the others are set to return from their tasks in the next day or two; if everything goes well, we'll be ready to make a strike on the Altar of the Sunne! Hopefully this can be resolved then."

"Either way, it doesn't change my course of action," the Kalos Champion said, bringing herself, once more, to a standing position. The two native Alolans regarded her carefully as she began to walk towards the stained-glass windows, hands behind her back as she considered it all. The doors to the room opened a little and Diantha caught sight of Kathi Lee, who nodded without a word. The Champion nodded back in confirmation. She breathed in. "The first League Conference in Alola is something to be highly celebrated. So, myself and the other Champions have made an important decision.

"All five of us will be in attendance at the Lanakila Conference."

If Kukui or Akela were surprised whatsoever, they didn't show any reaction. She supposed that was for the best, as it meant that they were accepting the League's decision. Indeed, if Mega Evolving, or those with Pokémon on a comparable level would be best equipped to deal with the threat at hand, then having that bevy of Champions in the place where all was about to go down was for the best. Plus, she figured it would truly keep Lusamine's watchful eye from the Ultra Space fixed on the League.

_So, at last we've come to it,_  Diantha couldn't help but think, watching the waves of the waterfall crashing down outside. She breathed in. The world was on the move again. Their time of waiting and watching was over.  _The next great battle for peace in our time has begun._

* * *

Alain had only been near one Pokémon League stadium in his entire life, and to this day it served as a constant reminder of his failings. He could never walk past that part of Lumiose City without thinking of all that his actions had wrought. Sure, everything turned out fine in the end, but it was a source of something constantly weighing in on his heart. Only a few people had been able to put a salve on that part of him, reminding him of how everything had been resolved. To that end, he was able to move forward.

It made seeing the second League stadium hurt less.

"Wow, there's like a dome and everything!" Mairin exclaimed, pressing her face close to the window of the helicopter that was descending towards the large buildings, village and stadium that occupied the top of Mount Lanakila. They weren't the only ones arriving, either, various other transports with either the League logo or one from a local organization were all heading for that same exact spot from the air.

"It is a rather amazing sight," Sycamore commented from his own spot in the helicopter as it streaked downward. Alain took a glance, noting the very elaborate structure that rested there upon the peak. It was snowing atop Mount Lanakila, that snow melting off the large dome which seemed to encapsulate the impressive looking stadium.

Now that it was all complete, and they were closer to it, the boy could see its intricacies. It seemed to be built on an old stadium, likely used for ancient traditions back in the day. Now, however, it was modernized with electronic screens and stands large enough to fit even twice the audience from what there had been in the Kalos League! Though Alain admitted that he'd be surprised if it got even a quarter as full considering its location. At the very least, the nearly transparent dome prevented the snow from getting inside and ultimately affecting battles. Beyond that were other buildings for lodging, looking like a snow topped village that probably had wonderful fires raging indoors to warm the visitors. Though it wasn't their own particular destination for the moment. Alain felt Mairin tugging at his sleeve.

"Maybe you should take part again, huh?" she said with a little grin before elbowing him. The girl had gotten far too used to teasing him since she'd become friends with Bonnie.

"I'll pass," Alain stated simply. Sycamore appeared to find that amusing as their helicopter slowed for the landing.

"I don't think they'd want to see you take part, Alain," the professor said, reaching over to pat him on the back. "From what I know, the Alolans are  _very_  steeped in their traditions. While a foreign  _trainer_  might be no problem, bringing in a whole slew of foreign Pokémon for an event like this would be tantamount to sacrilege."

"That means he probably wouldn't use Greninja, then, unless the situation absolutely called for it," Alain expressed, just slightly disappointed. It had been some time since he'd seen Ash go all out. The helicopter finally stopped and all three of its passengers unclipped their seatbelts to make their way out on to the snowy landing once it had stabilized enough for them to do so. The black-haired boy turned towards the large building that was their ultimate destination, the location looking almost castle-like. Some people were lingering outside, but most were going in.

"That's right, Ash and Serena are here, right?" Mairin stated with a grin. Chespie, who had been sleeping on her lap, awoke and dove inside her shirt at the cold. Alain just laughed a little and walked forward. There was a familiarly striking woman approaching them with a wave, looking more dressed for the beach than the snow, though he could remark that he wasn't even cold, himself, despite his own basic attire.

"Glad you all could make it," the woman said. Sycamore seemed to wink at her. "It looks like you're the third helicopter from Kalos to arrive. I'm surprised Mr. Meyer isn't with you, from what Diantha has said."

"Taking care of things at the Gym, Madam Champion," Sycamore said to the woman with another wink. The Champion, Cynthia (Alain had only just realized her name), didn't look fazed at all, simply returning the response with a smile and motioning towards the building.

"A number of trainers have arrived and we'll begin briefing and distribution soon," the woman said to them. Alain offered a curt nod, grabbing on to Mairin's hand and beginning to pull her away while Sycamore stayed behind to chat. He kept going towards the interior, passing by a man who was staring up at the sky with a bored expression as he leaned against the exterior. He seemed to be acting like he didn't care, for whatever reason, and Alain ultimately ignored him to make his way inside the main hall of the castle fortress atop the mountain.

True to Cynthia's words, it was positively buzzing with people, and plenty of familiar faces. By one of the windowed walls was a large table of food that some were gathered around, chatting via either introducing themselves or reuniting. There was another guy there, too, strumming on a guitar like he was in a concert, though many ignored him, except for what looked like tittering fangirls of some sort. Alain just remained where he was while Mairin and Chespie ran for the food gleefully.

"Hey, stop looking so sour!" Alain jerked forward at the thump on his back and he turned around to see a rather familiar face from their multiple encounters.

"Astrid," he noted with a nod. The young woman grinned at him before placing an arm on his shoulder while she adjusted her shoes. "I had a feeling you'd be here. Who did you come with?"

"The Shalour Gym Leader," she stated. "Since Geosenge and my loss in the League to Ash, I chose to up my Mega Evolution game, so I went to study at the Tower of Mastery. When the summons came, well, there was no way I was turning that down. Especially since I heard Ash and Serena were in the region. It's been a while."

"It certainly has," Alain agreed. He laughed a little, glad to see one of his comrades in arms doing well. In fact, judging by those that were currently approaching, it was more than one of them that was doing well, even if he couldn't name them all by just seeing their faces. Astrid raised her hand in greeting to the group of four currently approaching.

"Yo, Astrid!" one of them called, and Alain could swear he saw tinge of pink on the boy's face. It made his eyes slide over to Mairin for a second before snapping right back. "You're looking fine…well. You're looking well."

"So are you, Rocky," Astrid said. She seemed to have finally finished with her shoe and detached herself from Alain. "Keeping busy, I'm sure. Though I'm surprised you have the time away from your school."

"My mother's serving as a substitute teacher with Nurse Joy…and Merry is…well, she decided to help out, for what that's worth," the blond boy in the lead answered. Alain remembered him as Seamus, but other than a shared nod, couldn't remember much else. The couple behind him looked vaguely disinterested in their current particular conversation, the girl looking around while the boy rolled his eyes at Rocky's rather obvious affections. "Pretty crazy, huh?"

"Hm?" Alain questioned, realizing that Seamus was speaking to him directly. The boy had his hands shoved in his pockets as he stared out of the windows towards the stadium that was outside.

"All this. I mean, you'd have thought that big battle months ago would have been the end of it, right?" Seamus asked. To this, Alain nodded, acknowledging that aspect of their meeting here. One would have thought that stopping the mastermind behind people like Lysandre would have put an end to meeting for yet another big battle about to take place, but it turned out they were wrong…or maybe that they hadn't even stopped the mastermind in the first place. "Ah well, free trip to Alola, right? And around the time of the League, too."

"I'm sure it'll be fun to watch," Alain agreed. Seamus' eyes were lighting up, as though he was thinking it would be more than fun. It allowed Alain to divert his attention for a moment, staring out at that vaunted stadium. True enough, the more that he thought about it, the more he realized just what would be taking place there.

That stadium was the end result of countless trainers' journeys; something that he now realized he had walked all over in the course of his desire to battle Ash. It was another thing he felt he had to make up for, and perhaps by cheering them all on, he'd be able to do so. In particular, though, he wanted to watch Ash battle again. Sure, part of him wanted to take part in the battle, himself, but the other, much larger part, genuinely just wanted to see Ash rise to the top like he'd done in Kalos.

"Astrid! It's been a long time!" yelled another familiar voice. Alain jerked out of his own beratement to face the girl that was approaching, her dark blue hair flying out as some others traveled with her. Astrid faced away from Rocky, grinning as she reached forward to take Dawn's hands. "You weren't at Ash's birthday party, so I'm surprised to see you here!"

"I was busy…"

"Grandpa was putting her through the paces!" shouted Korrina, skating over with a big grin. "She wanted to come, but grandpa wouldn't let her at the time. Didn't think to bring it up since I had her gift with me."

"Just a small token," Astrid laughed out heartily. "But who knew we'd all be gathering like  _this_  again."

"Well, you know Ash," Brock said stoically behind everyone, "wherever he goes…"

"Trouble always follows," the group agreed as one. It was such a plain and easy truth that they descended into laughter following it, only straightening up when they couldn't laugh anymore. By that point, the humor was gone, replaced with all manner of seriousness.

"But really, it looks like we're about to have a big battle again," May pointed out. "The Pokémon League seems to be keeping it quiet except to those of us that have fought before or are strong enough to fight now, but there's no doubt people are becoming aware that something's about to happen here."

"And Ash is in the center of it all, as usual," Dawn sighed out. Alain thought he heard a statement about the raven-haired boy's involvement in such dangerous and reckless situations making him such a kid, but the voice was drowned out by the loud crush of the crowd. For some reason, Alain was pleased with that. "Serena, too, I guess…but has anyone heard from them in months?"

"Serena called the lab a few weeks ago, actually," Alain noted. Eyes went back to him and he found himself slightly uncomfortable. Give him a battle and he excelled, but put him with a big group of people and he just preferred to be alone. Though, he did feel Mairin's eyes on him as she made her way back from the table, pushing him to be more social in the moment. "She was asking the professor questions about…her father, I think…"

"Michael, huh?" Brock said, his tone far more serious than before. "Not that it's the same Michael, but even so…Wonder why she's looking for him."

"I have no idea, but it seemed like she was trying to get a track on his movements over the years. Haven't heard from her since, so maybe she found him," Alain told them. It was about the best hint they had towards wherever she would be.

"Clemont's barely called, too," Korrina said, flicking a little bit of her hair as she spoke to them. "I think he called once, a month ago, and said he was on some big research project and was taking part at the Battle Tree, but otherwise there was radio silence, though I'm sure he's okay! The weird part was that Bonnie wasn't with him…"

" _That_  was the weird part?" asked the remaining boy that had arrived with Seamus.

"Weird? I'd say all of this is just another Tuesday," Dawn laughed out with a shrug. May paused a moment to gobble down some grapes before raising an eyebrow.

"It's not a Tuesday…" Dawn quickly moved to shush her by making a statement about some boy named Drew that got the two into a near fight with each other, replete with teasing, blushes and glares from both sides.

Alain just drew back from it. Ash and his group had seemed to have gone off the radar for the last month, no doubt to prepare for the situation that was the reason they were all gathered now. It was completely like him to do everything he could to protect everyone, though going dark for a whole month seemed rather unlike him, when he thought about it. Either way, Alain knew the boy would no doubt come to Mount Lanakila sooner or later for the League, and they could reunite then. He looked forward to seeing how strong Ash had become in Alola.

"Ah, Aria, it's been too long!" Brock suddenly yelled, making Alain face the Pokémon doctor. True to his statement, the Kalos Queen, herself, was now approaching. She wasn't dressed in her regal outfits as usual, but rather in very casual dress. Perhaps it was because here she didn't need to worry about being known as a position (well, outside of those gathered with them), but rather just as a person. Either way, she still looked stunning, at least enough for the enamored Brock.

"It certainly has," the pinkette giggled out, curtseying a little as Brock reached his hand out. For whatever reason, she actually reached forward and took it. The young man looked ready to positively explode. "You've been well, Brock?"

"Better now that you're-"

"Croagunk!" Brock's body went rigid and he collapsed, his hand sliding out of Aria's. Croagunk was standing behind him, an evil little grin on his face as his fist glowed purple from jabbing his master in the behind. Aria surveyed the whole scene with amusement. Dawn and a ginger haired girl near her laughed, while Croagunk grabbed hold of his trainer's feet and began to drag him off.

"That's a shame. I was hoping to speak with him more," Aria said. If Alain didn't know better, he'd have thought that she actually  _wanted_  to be with Brock…or maybe he didn't know better and she was genuinely pouting about not being able to spend time with the overly-zealous and flirtatious man. Considering Professor Sycamore's suaveness, he had to suppose that maybe it was the case. Dawn appeared to pick up on this, along with May.

"You're joking, right?" the brunette asked, while Dawn's mouth simply fell open. Alain took that as indication that the conversation would leave the mutual topics they were aware of, and he instead turned towards the table of food. As noticed, Mairin had already left it, looking up at the big, burly man with a Garchomp next to him. He looked rather smug, and Alain could now accurately identify him as Remo; no doubt the man liked having some praises lavished upon him.

Shaking his head, Alain decided to get a small snack while they waited, grabbing a tiny plate. Across the table was the, again, familiar green-haired visage of Ash's rival, Sawyer. The boy looked even more mature than when they'd met at Ash's birthday party as he fastened his ascot. His gaze, however, seemed to be bouncing all over the place. At times, it would linger on him with a nod, others it would focus on the blue-haired girl he had likely arrived with. Then there were the longer, and slightly more apprehensive, stares towards the purple-haired boy that was leaning lazily against a table as he sipped on some orange juice. Alain quickly recognized why.

"It's kind of weird, meeting their real selves, huh?" Sawyer said with a chuckle. Alain nodded, unsure of what to really say. Most of those who had been a part of DARC were all those he had met at the Peace Tournament, except for Gary, or those who clearly had never been met before in either world. But the one that short distance away was most certainly their own world's version of the one that Ash called Paul. "He doesn't look as nasty, but it still makes you wonder."

"It does," Alain confirmed. Their conversation seemed to attract the attention of said boy, regardless. He stared at them, almost imperceptibly blinking before he finished his juice and placed it down. Alain found himself straightening, while Sawyer made to walk away. The surly boy stopped before him, not quite matching up in height as he looked up at him.

"You're Alain, right?" His tone was brusque (really, that was to be expected, when he thought about it). The black-haired boy nodded. Paul seemed to stop himself from scoffing. "You battled  _him_ , didn't you?"

"If by 'him' you mean Ash, then yes. I guess that would be something we have in common. So…yes, I'm Alain," the boy offered, holding a hand out awkwardly. Paul looked down at it before smirking a little. He reached forward and clasped it, neither breaking their challenging gazes towards one another.

"We do," Paul finally stated. His gaze slid off towards the window, the same one that led to the sight of the stadium. "He battled you in the finals, right?"

"He did. It was the toughest…er, second toughest battle I've ever fought. Took quite a bit out of myself and Charizard," Alain informed him. Despite the rather disinterested look on his face, he could tell that Paul was actually intrigued by the status of Ash and his strength. There was a fire in there, like a desire to watch him battle, or battle him again. It was a shared commonality. "I didn't see you fighting at Geosenge."

"No, I was still in Sinnoh," the boy answered, taking his hand back and folding his arms. The boy didn't share much more about that particular event, however. "When those things attacked, though…well, I figured it would be a good challenge for my Pokémon and I."

"That all you kids think about these days?" Alain stopped himself from jumping, turning along with Paul towards the man that had joined them. He looked like the one that had been leaning so lazily outside without a care in the world. "Alola's in danger, and you care about growing stronger for yourself?"

"I'm here, aren't I?" Paul asked roughly. The older man considered him a moment and then scoffed, throwing his hands up in the air. "I don't want the world to end any more than anyone else. That'd be pointless. Anybody thinking it would do them any good is either pathetic or stupid."

Alain just watched in amusement as he listened to the boy. He could certainly hear the vernacular that identified him as this world's version of the Paul that he had met, but at the same time there wasn't the roiling rage underneath. He was calmer, more respectful towards people who deserved it. Meeting Ash really seemed to bring out the best in a lot of people. Knowing that, he shifted his focus to the shrugging man.

"Well, whatever, you do what you want," he said with a chuckle. "I'm only here for the battle, myself. Not for that 'growing stronger' crap, though. Beyond that…heh…that'll take years…"

"What will?" Alain asked, blurting out his intrigue before he could really stop to think about it. The man smirked at him, before he finally turned away.

"Nothing. If you kids want to know about Ash Ketchum, I wouldn't worry," the man said, waving his hand rather dismissively. "He's a strong kid. Might be a little confused from things, but I'm sure he'll figure it out in time for that spectacle. I'm looking forward to it…"

Somehow, that got Alain's blood racing, and his spirit fired up. He shared a look with the reticent boy next to him, both clearly experiencing the kind of rush that could only happen when thinking about battling Ash. Hearing that he'd clearly gotten even stronger simply made it even better. The sound of running footsteps drew them away as a man in a trench coat with black hair approached the other man they had been speaking with.

"Mr. Nanu! Mr. Nanu!" the man cried stoically, but with a sense of great urgency. Nanu lifted his eyebrow, as though indicating that the man should hurry up. Alain saw a familiar badge from the International Police (one he was especially familiar with after the interrogation following the Kalos Crisis) as the man stopped and leaned to whisper into Nanu's ear. It was still loud enough for Alain to hear it quite clearly. "We have it confirmed. They've been sighted on the move again. I've already informed Champion Cynthia."

"Finally…" Nanu grinned out, looking like a bloodthirsty beast, ready for the fight. "It's about damn time. Looks like Plumeria played her cards too early…"

The sound of loud, sharp claps split the air and Alain turned to face the entrance. He wasn't the only one in the room doing so; pretty much everyone there was turning to face the source of the noise. To no one's surprise, the one who was calling them to attention was Champion Cynthia. A movement at his side indicated to Alain that Mairin had returned and they were now all paying attention. He was just glad to not have to speak in much of a social capacity anymore; he had a feeling that the purple-haired boy next to him was similar in that regard, as well.

"Well, it would appear that just about everyone has gathered, then," Cynthia called out, making sure that everyone was riveted on her. "As you all know, we have called you here because of the crisis that will be facing Alola and the entire world. This is the source of it! Here and now! If we do not hold the line, then the Ultra Beasts you all have no doubt heard about will destroy our world as they bleed into other regions the way they did a month ago.

"To that end, we have planned a preemptive strike to take place soon, and we may require the strength of everyone here." There were some mutterings, followed by a loud clacking that showed some people, dressed in white, rolling in what seemed to be carts of various colored jewels…or maybe they were crystals? Alain couldn't tell from his distance. "Should that fail, we will have one more chance, following the Lanakila Conference to be held at this location. In order to complete it, therefore, we must arm you!"

"Excuse me, but when do we plan on making this preemptive strike, and how are we going about it?" Aria asked, no doubt the only one of them to actually have the guts and position to. Cynthia smiled at her and nodded.

"Soon. As of right now, the details beyond 'in the next couple of days' are unclear. Our comrades that have been working to prepare for the strike have yet to convene, themselves. As soon as they have, we'll have a better idea of what needs to be done and how and when," Cynthia clarified. Alain was pretty sure about whom she was talking. The Champion breathed in and out once more. "Now, before we talk any further, each one of you should approach here and take a Z-Crystal. Not to use, but to hold. No exceptions. No arguments. Our research has proven this will be vital to our assault."

She gave no other reason for it. Leastways, she didn't until all of the confused muttering truly reached its peak. When she finally did, it all made sense and Alain was feeling a little excited. Their next big battle was here, the chance to fight alongside Ash again to protect their world. It may have been unnatural for someone to think that way, but he was ready.

The board was set.

The pieces were on the move once again.

After a month of waiting, things were finally about to burst. Cynthia spoke.

"Without them in your possession, you can't even hope to reach Team Skull and put an end to these nefarious schemes once and for all. Now, take one, and we can begin the battle for our world once more!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Yes, this was a different chapter. Like in Tribulations, I wanted to give that feel of "hello, this is the final story!". I hope it all worked out the way that I wanted it to. The first part, in particular, was something that I really enjoyed overall. I haven't shown a lot of Michael, so this was the chance to show that first meeting before he did all his dirty work in Alola. Really, though, the chapter was setting up the final conflict that is coming. As for our heroes…what have they been up to? Where are they? What has occurred in this last month? Well, next chapter will help to answer some of those questions!
> 
> All that said, we're really embarking on the final chapter of this trilogy, and I hope you'll ride it out with me to the very end. I know I'll work on bringing you the best product I can! So, until next time, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	2. A Gathering

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be the first to admit the opening here isn't super action-packed…yet. But it will be. Also, some chapters will post a little earlier (hour-wise) than others. Whatever, Chapter 2 time!

Chapter 2

A Gathering

The waves sloshed and swished as the boat cut through the waters, aiming for its major destination; one where it had not been in a month. One to which it was returning at long last. The sun was rising over the water, turning the sea sparkling with its golden rays. Wingull flapped around, as though the events of a month ago had done little to stop nature from continuing onward just as it always had. That was likely for the best as, around the boat, the day was coming to life.

Serena breathed in, placing a hand behind her head as her blonde locks flowed out behind her. They had grown a little, with no time to do maintenance on her hair over the last month, now almost touching her shoulders, though she was perfectly fine with it. Her skin had grown a little more tanned, as well, and on her wrist still sat the glittering Z-Ring. It had been a long month; one of searching, physically and emotionally.

"Lillie, are you almost set?" Serena called down into the cabin of the ferry once she'd finished exhaling. She got no response and stepped around to look down into the space that was occupied by all of her companions, as eccentric and zany as they were. Her eyes flitted up to their driver, a man who'd said little over the last month, except for when they had arrived at a village on Poni Island and he'd visited his family. The man remained stoic even now, offering but a small shrug. "Lillie? Jessie? James?"

"Present and accounted for, twerpette. Stop shouting!" Jessie's voice snapped within the cabin. Serena stepped back as the magenta-haired woman finally emerged with a rather light scowl on her face. She was not an early riser, Serena had discovered, much to her amusement. Not that Serena had much room to complain, considering there had been some days she'd slept in as well.

"Maybe our bodies are here, but I'm pretty sure my brain is back dere…" Meowth lamented.

"You'll be fine," Serena remarked. Meowth, and Wobbuffet who trailed behind him, gave no comment. She rolled her eyes. They had spent a month together…well, roughly. There were a number of times that Team Rocket seemed to like running off, doing their own thing. One time it was a Ceremony for Jessie to earn her final Lei on Poni Island (no longer keeping her secret identity hidden from her rival), and another time they were trying to take a strange souvenir from some cave. The trio had been trapped inside there for days while Lillie and she looked for clues on the mountain pass. They were tired and silent for the next few days after that.

All in all, the month had done her relationship with Team Rocket some good…not that much had changed. They still vowed to capture Pikachu daily, and sometimes Meowth would try to swipe some of her pokeballs, only for Komala to slam the feline on the head. Really, it became a push and pull between them that essentially made their relationship  _exactly_  what it was when they'd left the Aether Foundation a month ago. The only difference, Serena noted as James lethargically joined his companions (complete with Crabrawler clamping on his head), was that Jessie was a little nicer to her. If one defined "nicer" as training with her and liberally insulting her technique in a condescending manner.

Serena could admit, however, that she had learned quite a bit from the older woman, promising to meet her in the finals of the Hope Leilani. Though, at times it felt like more than that. Training with Jessie, seeing her technique had made herself smile, reinforcing the view she'd come to accept. More than that, she had started to develop a new view of accomplishing her dream; though, with them constantly on the move, it was hard to prove, let alone accept.

"You'd think after a month that they wouldn't be this way in the morning," called Lillie's voice brightly. She emerged from the cabin, her pink backpack slung over her shoulders as she smiled. A month had done Lillie the most good of all. Refusing to let what her mother had done get to her, Lillie had truly grown in leaps and bounds, evidenced by Komala resting comfortably on her head. She raised a hand upwards and Serena caught sight of the glittering Z-Ring on her wrist. The honey blonde grinned at it.

"You'd think, but I'm not sure Team Rocket can  _ever_  change," Serena giggled out. Lillie was finally fully out on the deck, staring across the water as she stretched her hands upward. She turned back to her bag.

"We're almost home, Nebby," she spoke fondly. No response came, but Lillie didn't let her smile drop. Instead, it transferred into a look of determination. She hadn't expected one, Serena knew, but it was the exact reason they could now see the floating island on the horizon. "It'll be good to see everyone."

"Yes! We can finally snag…I mean, see Pikachu again," Meowth said, rubbing his paws together. Serena rolled her eyes at his rather obvious slip.

Serena said nothing to all of their joyful expressions at reuniting with the others. She, too, felt ready to see them all again. A month apart made her long for her family not tied by blood more than usual. While she had spoken with Clemont once or twice when he seemed to have information that she was looking for through his research, Bonnie was pretty much off the radar. Only snippets of her, Lionel and Greninja were ever heard of. Nor had Serena heard from Ash, but somehow, she expected that and wasn't worried. Serena was all too happy and ready to see him again.

"Land ahoy!" James finally said, shaking his lethargy away in the sea breeze. Serena stood next to Lillie and looked up to the Foundation that was now approaching quickly. It really had been too long. Looking towards the manmade island, Serena could still see the wrecked places where Latias had obliterated the cannons. They were nicely covered up, but to those who knew, it was very obvious what had happened.

At the very least, this time they weren't attempting to assault them so violently.

"Look, Komala, we're nearly at the Foundation," Lillie pointed out, reaching up to pat her Pokémon on the head. Komala yawned, but still didn't wake up, though Lillie accepted it as acknowledgement. The boat began to slow, drawing into the harbor. Serena walked forward, up to the railing, and looked out. Someone was standing there, clearly waiting for them and their arrival in the midst of all the activity there. "Ah! Miss Wicke! We're back!"

"Welcome back, Mistress Lillie!" Wicke's voice called out. Serena also raised her hand and waved to the portly woman that was smiling up at them all kindly. "And you, as well, Miss Serena. I trust you've been well the last month."

"What are we, chopped liver?" Jessie demanded. No one acknowledged her, though James patted her kindly on the back. At long last, the boat slowed itself to a stop and the ramp instantly expanded, touching down upon the harbor. Looking around, Serena noticed that theirs was the only boat that was in the harbor at the moment. Lillie was ahead of her now, running down the ramp with enthusiasm. Serena shook her head and followed after. Seeing Lillie smile gave her hope.

"Are we the first ones back, Miss Wicke?" she asked. The woman was currently caught up in a hug from Lillie, but once the blonde had separated and taken Komala into her arms, the older woman finally answered.

"So, it would seem; though I don't believe Clemont's group will be arriving. He called Master Gladion earlier," Wicke informed them. Serena nodded, accepting this piece of information. On the other hand, Lillie was pouting just a bit and Serena had more than a fair idea as to why she was, but decided to  _not_  act like Bonnie and tease her mercilessly about it. "Speaking of, the young master is waiting for you all on the upper level."

"Well, we should get going, then," Lillie said cheerily. Team Rocket was quickly scrambling off the ship by this point, making to follow after them. Wicke smiled at the trio briefly and turned around, nodding her head to two employees with obvious instructions to wait for the other boats. That done, the older woman began to lead them straight to the elevator. "Are the League people and ARC still here?"

"Champion Lance left about a week ago, on orders to help with a shipment. Goodness knows we didn't have that much Psychium-Z to distribute, since Faba used so much of it in his experiments, trying to replicate the energy," Wicke said, shaking her head like it was deplorable. Of course, it  _was_  deplorable, but that seemed to be beside the point. "Of course, he succeeded with that infernal totem-aura device, though I'm not privy to whether it's the same thing or if he just dumped them for energy consumption."

"Looks like you guys have had to do a lot," Serena commented as their large group stepped on to the elevator. Wicke pushed a button and the machine closed around them before moving upwards.

"It's been a process," Wicke said with a slightly tired sigh in their direction. "Master Gladion has been handling it well enough, and those employees which weren't involved in the heinous tasks that Lusamine had set have been very supportive of his moves. Thankfully, we've had ARC aiding us."

"I saw his announcement on Serena's tablet," Lillie said calmly. Serena shifted her blue eyes to the girl as her hands gripped to her backpack straps. "He really came off as the head of the company, even if it was a lie."

"Well, of course it would be a bad thing to tell everyone the head of this organization was bonkers and did stuff to Pokémon," Jessie said, folding her arms like it was the most obvious thing in the entire world. Both Serena and Lillie raised their eyebrows. "Well, I mean, come on…"

"Sort of like a member of a bunch of Pokémon thieves telling her rival that she's been competing in Ceremonies this whole time?" Serena asked slyly. Jessie's teeth suddenly gritted while James put a hand on her and held her back. The woman was thankfully prevented from retaliating due to the elevator coming to a slow, already bringing them to their destination, faster than Serena could remember.

"In any case," Wicke continued, like the conversation hadn't even been interrupted in the slightest, "Aether has undergone massive changes under Master Gladion, and I couldn't be happier. Having the support of the public in the president's 'sickness' does help, I'll admit."

"Tell me, Miss Wicke, when we bring mother back, does he intend to stay on as president?" Lillie asked. The question seemed to make Wicke stop, and Serena didn't blame her. It had been one of Lillie's closely guarded secrets; that she hadn't given up on her mother, determined to bring her back to her senses. Perhaps it was a lingering hold that Lusamine still had over her, or maybe it was just Lillie wanting to bring her back so they could try to be a real family again. Serena wasn't sure. However, Serena knew the girl was resigned for whatever outcome could occur (perhaps Lusamine was beyond saving, or perhaps she was…) but to hear her voice aloud that she wanted to bring Lusamine back was a surprise for anyone that hadn't heard it. Wicke turned back.

"I don't believe the young master has thought of any such plans," she said sharply. It answered everything. Once more, Wicke faced forward and began to lead them through the restored garden, to the manor in the distance. There were some workers and Pokémon about, a far cry from what it was a month ago when they fought Team Skull. As they did so, Wicke attempted to rapidly fill them in on what had occurred within the Aether Foundation, even though Serena knew they'd share all of their information once they were gathered.

"Since Madam Lusamine's departure, Master Gladion has worked in healing the rifts caused by her and Faba's illicit activities," she was telling them. "The secret lab in the manor has been shut down, as has the entire science division. I do believe that work is being done alongside Aidan to promote a much cleaner science program, but until such a time as that program's details have been worked out, we can't restart projects.

"Likewise, we've been working in concert with the League. Our weaponry has stood down and some money has been given in reparation towards the League. The Aether Turbo was dismantled, replaced with the system of helicopters we had before to ferry citizens and employees alike. Just as well, we've used our efforts to clean up Po Town in Team Skull's absence. Thanks to the same construction company that built Blush Mountain's facilities, we've had an easier time of it. Plenty of volunteers. It's looking more beautiful by the day."

"So, those bozos really  _did_  vanish," James commented, stroking his chin.

"Dat's what da powa of Team Rocket can manage!" Meowth stated triumphantly. Serena continued to ignore them, as did Wicke, it seemed.

"Of course, there are still issues. Keeping the alliance with Team Skull, along with other sordid details, a secret has been a task. We do intend to go public eventually, but with the Day of Stars looming, now is obviously not the right time. Beyond that, Clemont and Champion Steven's theory has been proven correct: we found Kahuna Olivia's missing shipment of Buginium-Z…or what was left of it, at least. They must have taken the crystals to have on hand. He should be able to explain more."

"Sounds like a plan," Serena said confidently, nodding towards Lillie. They were close to the manor, now, and the two men standing outside. Both were easily recognizable. "It's good to see you again, Mr. Aidan, Tau."

"Miss Serena, it's been a while," Tau stated with a smile. Serena had a feeling that Aidan had called him in to aid with the restoration of the Aether Foundation. "I'm glad to see you're well."

"Me, too," Serena laughed out. Aidan didn't waste his time with words and promptly whipped around to lead the group into the manor proper. Tau wore a bemused expression, but offered his hand for Serena to shake. If she was honest, it felt rather weird, yet right at the same time. "What have you and ARC been up to?"

"Mostly cleaning up the little things," Tau answered, following after the man that was essentially his boss. "I know you've met with Chi at Mount Hokulani, and Theta is busy with the restoration of Po Town. Already has a plan for revitalizing the area, too. I'm just here lending my business expertise."

"Oh, yes! You were some radio manager guy, weren't you?" James said, plopping his hand to his fist like he'd discovered the mystery of a lifetime. Jessie looked instantly enamored.

"Then perhaps I could have a big radio debut!" she said excitedly. Meowth and Wobbuffet regarded her with skepticism while Tau laughed, running a hand through his slicked back hair.

"That was another lifetime." He certainly meant it, and he'd also said all that he needed to say as they were reaching the conference room where the decision to separate for a month had been reached by all of them. Aidan opened the doors, and Serena and Lillie instantly caught sight of the one they had both been considering for a month (one more than the other).

"Lillie. Serena," Gladion said upon sight of them, having been facing the door at the moment they had both been opened. Lillie ran forward, and suddenly threw her arms around her brother. Maybe it was because they had separated so soon after connecting once more, or maybe it was just the relief that Gladion hadn't sunk into the abyss, but Lillie was certainly more emotional than Serena thought she'd be. She was definitely more emotional than Serena, who was instead staring at the creature beside Gladion, sniffing papers on the conference table.

It looked like a wild, yet tamed, and different version of Null. The bottom of its body had grown jet black, but for the tail, which seemed to shift in colors every time it was in the sunlight. As her gaze traveled upwards, she could see its body was made of white fur, fangs bared and taller than Null was, as though no longer constrained. She opened her mouth and shut it, especially when she heard Team Rocket talking about what a rare Pokémon it would be to steal.

"You look well, brother," Lillie said, drawing back. Gladion blinked and nodded, looking away just as quickly. He seemed to still be holding guilt over what he'd done to his sister, despite Lillie's obvious forgiveness (though it had hardly been easy, no matter the words she'd parted with).

"So do you…Is that…?" Gladion questioned, pointing down to her wrist. Lillie lifted it, grinning, and the whole entire room was watching it.

"Gotten from Tapu Fini, itself!" Lillie said positively.

"But that's a story for another time," Serena interjected quickly. No one said anything to that, but decided to abandon the course of the conversation for a time. The slight shutting of the doors indicated that Wicke had departed once more for the docks to pick up the next arrivals. "Gladion, is that Null?"

"Srrrr!" the creature growled, as though it disliked the name. She took a step back while Gladion patted the creature on the head.

"Silvally," Gladion said. The Pokémon, Silvally, seemed to enjoy the affection, nuzzling Gladion's hand that contained the Z-Ring, the object giving off a soft glow. "We were doing some of the trials, battling Nanu, when Null's mask broke and his full power was unleashed. We've been mastering it ever since then."

"It looks very impressive," Lillie stated. Gladion seemed to scoff a bit at that statement, though Silvally looked proud at its strengths being praised.

"What's more impressive is that you managed to get a Z-Ring from Tapu Fini of all the guardian deities. From what I've heard, it hasn't chosen one in fifty years!" Gladion remarked, praising his sister. She took it with a flush of embarrassment, hand running through her hair with a light laugh.

"Either way, it means that things are about to move again," Aidan, at last, spoke to the group. He was walking over to a screen on the wall, swiping a hand across it to turn it on. "The Tapus have all chosen their champions; they've all sung their songs…the world is on the move again."

"Let's not forget what Nanu delivered to us: Team Skull is also on the move once more, amassing near the Altar of the Sunne," Tau instructed, as though it was all quite elementary.

"So, our hypothesis was right!" Lillie said cheerfully, bringing her fists close to her chest in victory. Serena smiled; finally, something was really going right for them. Aidan finally nodded as various squares and bubbles appeared on the screen. The bespectacled blond clicked on one, and it began to connect.

"I believe more than just  _our_  hypotheses were correct. You haven't known these last few weeks, but there have been many theories that we've been testing, and it's prepared us for the battle that is to come. Once we have the Sun Flute and its counterpart, the Moon Flute, we should be prepared," Aidan said quite confidently. A smirk began to stretch his face and he turned to the screen. "I'll let someone who really knows tell you more, but for now, we can't wait for the others. Pass information along as we go: Team Skull's movement necessitates immediate action."

His statement was followed by the screen suddenly bursting with light, and some very familiar faces at last appearing on it. Serena couldn't help the absolutely unadulterated grin from stretching across her lips at the sight. They weren't quite aware that they had been connected to yet, so Serena chose to expedite that. "Clemont!"

"Ah!" the inventor spoke, fumbling with a screwdriver that was caught by Charjabug before it could cause any damage. "Thanks, Charjabug. Serena, it's great to hear your voice again!"

"And don't forget about me!" Hau said jubilantly. Both boys on the screen had turned around, Hau throwing his arm around Clemont cheerfully. They both looked to be in good spirits, if a little tired from their likely constant work. They were about to begin speaking again when another face suddenly intruded on it.

"Rotom is happy to see Serena and Lillie again…though Rotom could care less about Team Rocket or Gladion…" Rotom said excitedly. Gladion predictably scoffed while Team Rocket, or at least Jessie, predictably got absolutely infuriated.

"Hey, you stupid bag of bolts! You want to talk smack about Team Rocket and I'll show you my boot!" Jessie snapped angrily towards Rotom. The Pokédex whistled an innocent tune of boredom.

"Jessie, let's not cause problems, or everything we've done will be moot," James pointed out. Meowth sighed and shrugged liberally.

"Wouldn't dat be a total hoot."

"Wobba wobb…"

"Yes, Rotom, it's good to see you, as well," Serena laughed out, shaking her head at everyone's antics. Rotom looked particularly smug, only to be suddenly pulled back by Clemont and placed down next to Charjabug and Bunnelby, the latter holding it down. "And you two, Clemont, Hau, you both look seasoned."

"So do you," Clemont felt the need to point out. "I see Lillie has a Z-Ring."

"I sure do," Lillie said, holding the glittering ring upwards once again for the inventor to take a look. The blond nodded, partially because he was proud, likely, but also because it seemed to please him for the battle that was ahead. Serena watched his eyes for just a second, noticing them clear themselves and focus on what was to come.

She didn't even need to be with him to know that he had grown over the last month. His insecurity was gone, it seemed. It was likely his time battling alongside Hau, or maybe just putting his own particular brand of expertise to use in the situation. Before he could explain anything, Hau jumped right into the conversation, pretty much as expected. "That's totally awesome, Lillie! Maybe one day we can have a Z-Move battle!"

"Maybe later, Hau," Lillie giggled out, hiding the faint blush on her cheeks from his compliment. "Right now, we have very important work to do!"

"You're totally right! We've got that big battle ahead of us, and then the League, too! I've cleared all my trials, see?" Hau suddenly reached down and came back up with his amulet. It was completely filled in, Serena noticed, glittering with the orbs and wedges to signify that he had earned his access to the first ever Alola League. It made her wonder how Ash was doing in that regard, if he had moved forward with it at all. "But the Battle Tree is totally tough!"

"He's right," Clemont confirmed, his eyes steely. "I've only fought such difficult battles with Ash, and only League battles have been close to comparable to the level here. Not that they're all on that exact level, of course. Then again, maybe it wouldn't be so bad if I wasn't running research on my off days and evenings, but I think I've grown a lot from taking part in these."

"And Rotom has recorded much data!" Rotom said, though it was still locked in place by Bunnelby's rather strong ears, making its voice sound muffled. "Rotom has seen many Pokémon, strategies, trainers, and even updated some of Rotom's functions while Rotom was here! All the better to tea-"

"So, Clemont," Aidan spoke clearly, cutting across the raving Pokédex. The blond looked to him, clearly understanding what Aidan was about to ask of him in any regard. "You've shared a good chunk of your research with us here at Aether, but I think it's time to do so for the rest."

"Sure thing, but what about Ash and Bonnie? I don't see them there," Clemont remarked. Aidan waved it off, like the whole issue was actually completely unimportant in the long run. The boy sighed, but soon straightened himself. "Right, so I've been spending time creating analysis machines to aid Gary and Champion Steven in researching the Resolution Cave, and we've found some most interesting stuff."

"What kind of stuff?" Lillie asked, tilting her head to the side. Komala nearly slipped off, but remained fastened. Serena found it a little cute, the way she was sort of emulating Ash in that regard, her ponytail shaking to the side.

"In general, we've come to two conclusions. One is based on the cave itself, and the other revolves around all of the different things we've been looking for," Clemont explained to them, holding up two fingers. Hau already looked bored, as though he'd already heard all this before, or simply didn't care to listen to it at all. "The first is this: much of the cave seems to be made of the material that makes up the Z-Rings. It's the same principle employed in the barriers around the trials, or the Tapus' shrines. The Z-Ring emits a certain energy that, in large quantities and tied in with the connection to the Ultra Space, can prevent entry to a location where it amasses."

"The Altar of the Sunne," Serena noted, nodding her head to show she understood Clemont's comment. The boy nodded to her before reaching down and picking up a crystal; more particularly, a Z-Crystal.

"Yes," was the simple answer. "Gary's immense knowledge on the rifts formed and Steven's knowledge on stones has led to our analysis and theory being proven true. The Altar of the Sunne, and the Lake of the Moone, are directly tied to the Ultra Space, as though they are anchoring points, which in concert with the sparkling stones creates a barrier that can only be passed through with a Z-Crystal; the same exact principle used in making Z-Moves happen. The effect is stronger by the Altar, it would appear, though."

"In other words, as long as we have a Z-Crystal, we can pass through the barrier," Gladion concluded for him. It was an easy enough explanation, and certainly not a problem for any of them. It also explained why Team Skull had misappropriated the Buginium-Z and Aether had gone searching for Z-Crystals. A lot was really making sense now.

"The only issue, of course, is that the sky surrounding the Altar seems to be watched. Steven contacted some members of the International Police, but from what I know…" Clemont didn't need to finish his statement for them to all understand that one: Team Skull was back in the open again, watching the skies around the Altar of the Sunne. It only further proved their very points. "Either way, unless we can get Team Skull occupied, the only way to the altar is through a narrow canyon, perfect for an ambush. If we want that preemptive strike, we'll need to push through it. That's why I'm staying on Poni Island."

"Then I guess we'll be joining you there as soon as we have possession of the Sun Flute," Lillie said emphatically. Clemont nodded, but Serena had a little more on her brain than their battle formations.

"What was the second thing you discovered?" Clemont's eyes brightened at that, but before he got a chance to answer, the doors were opened once again, allowing light into the room. That same light blinded Serena for a moment, and she knew that couldn't see much. She could feel, though, judging from the pressure that suddenly exerted itself on her waist. When said pressure pulled back, Serena looked down to see Bonnie grinning at her. Atop her head was Dedenne, while Squishy and Bluey were traveling in style within her bag. Beyond her was Lionel, grinning as he stepped into the room alongside a laconic Greninja. Said Ninja Pokémon looked elsewhere, probably thinking about Ash, but had enough presence of mind to nod stoically at Serena.

"Clemont! Big brother, how are you? !" Bonnie shouted excitedly the second she saw Clemont on the screen. He laughed nervously and waved to his sister.

"I'm doing just fine. You look taller, Bonnie," he noted. Bonnie grinned proudly, placing her hands on her hips. He hadn't been lying; Serena could see how different Bonnie looked from her month away from all of them. Her skin was tanner, and she was taller, even if it wasn't by much. More importantly, she carried herself with a presence of her assured self, like she was already a Pokémon trainer, in spirit if not in name.

"Of course! I grew an inch! We measured me against Greninja yesterday," she spoke confidently. Lionel strode forward now, clasping a hand to the little girl's shoulder with a toothy grin. He didn't look much different, though Aidan might have thought so from his rolling eyes.

"Bonnie's become very capable," he said, his eyes flashing just a little with amusement. "We've braved many adventures together, high and low, Greninja and Squishy leading us on good trails and false trails until we finally reached that covetous prize!"

"Stop drawing out the drama, Lionel," Aidan commented, garnering a chuckle from Tau. Bonnie seemed to pout at the moment of their big triumphant return seemingly being ruined. She just looked at the screen, noticing Rotom there. The two seemed to glare at each other, but had no words of reunion to share.

"We're all glad you're doing well, Bonnie," Serena assured the lemon blonde. Bonnie grinned once more and nodded. "So, you found it then?"

"As promised," Bonnie stated. Squishy and Bluey dove into the bag and pulled out the object that had evidently been the source of their search. Serena, Lillie and Gladion all leaned in closer, while Team Rocket simply tried to find a way around them to take their own look. It was a small flute, yellow and orange in color, with the bright crest of a sun on its wooden surface. It looked majestic in its own way. "The Sun Flute!"

"It looks marvelous…" Lillie commented. "With this, we can restore Nebby!"

"And Nebby's been…?" Lionel asked. Lillie didn't answer verbally, and Serena pursed her lips while the blonde dug into her bag to pull out the poor eye-shaped creature. "I see…"

"Nothing's changed, for better or worse," Lillie stated. She looked a little sad saying it, but there was still a source of hope that was in her voice. "Nebby's been completely silent since that day. I think he just needs energy, and maybe the flutes can give it to him."

"I still think it's a long shot, especially if we're connecting it to the Ultra Space," Aidan commented tersely. Lillie didn't look the happiest at that, clutching Nebby closer to her, not a sound being heard. Bonnie reached up to place a hand on the little one with her.

"Regardless of whether it is, we need to give it a shot," Gladion spoke up. "Lusamine and Guzma are inside there, and they likely have an idea of what we've been planning. We need to ensure our efforts aren't wasted. Even a long shot is still a shot I'm willing to take."

"I don't believe it's as long as you might think it is, Mr. Aidan," Clemont commented, clearing his throat in the process. Serena's eyes went back over to her friend, eager to hear what was likely the second conclusion that he and the others had come to. In the background, Hau looked to be packing their bags. "Inside Resolution Cave seemed to be a small pocket of space, completely unstable…but it's been growing more so, almost enough to see inside it, though we haven't risked touching it. There is no doubt in my mind that this is connected to the Ultra Space, possibly a result of the first opening of it centuries ago, and due to its proximity, the Altar and Lake are connected as well."

"But what does any of that have to do with the flutes?" Aidan pointed out. To this, Clemont began to laugh.

"Heh heh heh…because I am certain that the flutes have the ability to draw out the dormant power within, safely!" Clemont answered. "I would need to examine them, but I am sure similar properties to the Z-Crystals rest inside, and as we know, Z-Crystals, Totem Pokémon and the Ultra Space are all connected. However, unlike Faba's barbaric methods, I believe the flute could act like a crystal to swathe Nebby in power and restore its form, and just as well, open a gate to the Ultra Space. Without him, I would think we might need an open rift, but if we play with the two flutes at the Altar, then we could…"

"For that, we'll need Kahili," Lionel concluded. Now that Serena recalled it, Kahili  _had_  mentioned that the Moon Flute would be easy enough to find, indicating that she either had an idea or knew exactly where it was.

"Well, that's simple enough. She should be returning with Ash, right?" Serena said. Lillie nodded, finding the answer clear, but some of the others in the room were all silent at the statement. It made a little bit of worry flood into her veins. "What?"

"Well…it's just…" Clemont started, taking his glasses off to clean them absentmindedly, "has anyone even heard from Ash in the last month?"

"I haven't," Bonnie said, throwing her hands behind her head, nearly knocking Dedenne off in the process. Squishy seemed bored with the conversation and dug further into her bag. Bluey remained alert however.

"You don't count mini-twerpette," Jessie said lazily, waving her hand back and forth a few times. "No one's heard from you either."

"I matter more than you," Bonnie said, glaring at Jessie vehemently. The two females of vastly disparate ages leaned in, glaring at one another like they were about to throw down in some epic brawl for all time. Rotom seemed to find it amusing from the other side of the screen.

"Yes! Death Match: Jessie vs. Bonnie!" Rotom cried. It managed to break free from Bunnelby while Serena resisted the urge to facepalm from its actions. "Who will win? Betting pools start now, and Rotom will record every single as-"

"Bunby!" Bunnelby's ears suddenly slammed back down onto Rotom once again, crushing it against the table. Clemont reached over and patted his steadfast partner on the head.

"Thank you, Bunnelby," he told the Digging Pokémon. "I should have never let Rotom watch those battles…In any case, seriously, has anyone heard from Ash?"

"Unimportant whether we have or haven't," Gladion said sharply. "We all have our own things to do. We may need Kahili, but right now it's just as important to secure the Altar of the Sunne for the ritual, isn't it?"

"By the way, where did you guys find the Sun Flute, anyway?" Lillie asked, turning to face Bonnie. Said girl stuck her tongue out and winked at her. That caused another pout to rise to the blond's cheeks while Hau laughed on the other end of the line at both of their expressions.

"It's  _secret_ ," she said, making herself, Dedenne and Lionel share in the chuckle. It was clear they wouldn't give it up to any of them. "Let's just say we climbed mountains, plundered caves, swam in oceans and even saw an underwater temple."

"Bonnie has clearly expanded her vocabulary, too…" Rotom said with a muffled voice, still held fast against the table. Bonnie adopted a sly look on her face, prompting Serena to sigh; this was clearly going to take longer than any of them planned, thanks to the ever belligerent duo lobbing insults at one another.

"Bonnie saw lots of  _cute_  Pokémon, too!" she insisted, forcing Rotom to grumble. Lionel laughed at his companion's statements. Clearly the two had managed to bond over the last month. Aidan groaned loudly.

"Can we please stop with all this? The League is gathering its forces as we speak," the blond remarked snappishly. "We don't have time to sit around on our behinds, twiddling our fingers. The time for the preemptive strike we all decided on is here, now. We must secure the Altar of the Sunne, obtain the Moon Flute and play the Champion's Song to restore Nebby to its glory and open our way into the Ultra Space before the Day of Stars."

"Easier said, than done," Tau pointed out. It was a sobering statement to all of them. Despite all of their successes in the last month, there still remained the obstacle before them of Team Skull and finding the final item needed. Serena's eyes drifted to the inert form that was Nebby and she sighed. They still had a long battle ahead of them, and that was before they could even consider the Hope Leilani and League.

_Ash…_ she couldn't help but think. It had been too long since she'd seen him, touched him, held him,  _kissed_  him. She missed him quite a bit, even if the month apart was a breath of fresh air. Really, it just made her wish to see him all the more, and she'd found herself counting down the days in the last week until they'd reunite. At least no one thought of suggesting Ash had…er…wandered. He was probably too busy training to even think about anything else (even her, she imagined).

"Serena." Gladion's loud voice drew her back and she blinked at Lillie's brother. His mouth was in a thin line as he spoke. "Now that we know what Clemont wanted to share with us, you and Lillie still haven't told us what your group discovered."

"Right," Serena said with a nod, realizing that they had been receiving all of the information, but had yet to truly share a piece of their own. Not that their own quest had really been all that important in the scheme of things when it came down to their preemptive strike…mostly because they weren't nearly as successful in all of their goals as the other groups seemed to have been. She looked over to Lillie and the blonde walked forward, placing Nebby and then Komala upon the table. The latter cuddled up against the former.

"So, first things first, we went to Poni Island," Lillie said with confidence. She held her wrist out to show off the Z-Ring that she had gotten from Tapu Fini. To this day, Serena could remember the sight of it. Maybe it was because she had her own Z-Ring from Tapu Lele, but she had seen the whole event happen. Team Rocket hadn't…mostly because Tapu Fini was as fickle as Kahili suggested and sent them blasting off quickly. "It's a bit hard to describe how it all happened, but if we meet at the Ruins of Hope on Poni Island, I can show you."

"That sounds like a good idea," Serena agreed. "It's possible we can reunite with you there, like a rendezvous point, Clemont. That way we can show you before we enter the canyon. Beyond the Champion's Song being played, that place was…different."

"Creepy."

"Totally weird."

"Bonkers."

"Wobba." Team Rocket's well-timed quips would have been enough to make Serena sigh, but she didn't. Instead, she was too busy suspecting that Lillie potentially had ulterior motives for wanting to show them Tapu Fini's shrine. It was certainly the most different one she'd ever been to, but it made all sorts of sense with what Kiawe and Hapu had spoken of so long ago, regarding the waters. Plus, there was still the possibility that the Tapus weren't done for them quite yet.

"Then I guess we'll have our meeting spot, and you have me intrigued," Clemont agreed. This prompted Bonnie to give a silent nod on their side of the screen. "I mean, things are weird here, too, but I'd certainly like to see what it's like there."

"Is it possible that the Tapus could give aid to us in regards to the Ultra Space and our preemptive strike?" Lionel asked, his rather facetious attitude having been completely dropped at this point. Serena and Lillie instantly and simultaneously shook their heads.

"The Tapus are preparing for war, though they didn't tell us anything," Lillie explained. "I think they're amassing their power, like they're creating another Z-Crystal, or just gathering their power."

"They're pretty, er, well…fickle, like Kahili said," Serena explained, rubbing the back of her head with a slight chuckle. "I'm surprised Tapu Fini chose to give Lillie a Z-Ring, but I know there was a reason behind it. The only question is really what that reason was."

"I'm not telling…yet," Lillie said with her own little wink. It soon faded to a genuine smile that reminded Serena of how much Lillie had grown. She was no longer the same meek and scared little girl that she had been before. "Either way, I'm pretty sure the Tapus won't be helping us, and I'd be surprised if they did. I'll tell you more once you've seen Tapu Fini's shrine."

"That works out," Clemont said. Hau seemed to agree, slamming both of their bags on the table. He was grinning, just like always.

"We're all ready to go on our end. How about you guys?" he said cheerily. Clemont frowned at him, though he didn't say anything. Rather, he was cut across by Aidan moving to ask his own question in his usual brusque manner.

"Serena, what of your other search? For your father? This world's Michael?" he asked. There was silence at that statement, and even Lillie hung her head. She had finally been told the exact nature of the events in Kalos during their separation, and certainly understood the meaning behind Michael's interference in Alola. Serena sucked in a breath, thinking of how best to broach the subject that Aidan had now put before them.

"It's a little complicated…" she said honestly. Her hands knitted together, twisting her fingers just a little as she considered all of her words carefully. "We did a lot of searching."

"Yeah, my feet are killer," Jessie complained. As if to emphasize the point, she collapsed in one of the chairs that was there. Most of them completely ignored her and her complaints. James and Meowth joined her, though, while Wobbuffet just tripped and fell flat on his face.

"I mean, the first place we started was the Seafolk Village, and I know it was random, but they traffic in a lot of information there."

"Poni Island practically thrives on obtaining and bartering information from the outside world," Lillie explained to those who were unfamiliar with the way the place worked. Serena let her do so, thinking back to their time spent there, gathering information. It had been such a happy place, and she felt they'd helped to make it just a little happier. "The Seafolk Village, especially, has a  _lot_  of information, if you're willing to help them out with things."

"It took three days to get the smell of fish out of our uniforms," James said handily. Again, they were ignored.

"Point is, I think my theory was right: my father is in Alola," Serena said simply. Aidan and Lionel looked to each other, harsh lines being drawn on to their faces from hearing it. She didn't blame them; after their long war with the other Michael, hearing about this version must have instilled some trepidation inside of them. Serena, however, still held to hope that they would ultimately have nothing to worry about in the long run. "The information we got there indicated that someone who looked like me, honey blonde hair and blue eyes, had visited the village about two months prior, looking for Resolution Cave to study its properties and ancient traditions."

"So that's why you called…" Clemont expressed, obviously putting the pieces together. Serena nodded. "Your father must have been the one that Gary encountered."

"That's what I guess. Knowing he was in Alola was proof enough for me," Serena said, folding her arms across her chest. "I had to figure he wouldn't be on Poni Island anymore, not with what he'd told Gary. So, our group decided to go elsewhere, particularly to the different ruins that we could. If he's anything like the Michael we all know, he continued studying ruins. I have no idea what drew him to Alola, but at this point, I focused in on a key observation."

"We're pretty sure we discovered where he's staying and observing at this moment," Lillie finished up for her. Aidan gazed at them both expectantly, but Serena held her tongue. Right now, there was no time left to worry about her father or anything he was planning or thinking or researching. It was the reason she felt she'd failed in that respect.

"Either way, I'm not ready to 'reunite' with him quite yet," Serena said sternly, imparting her desire to not share the information. "We have a very good idea of where he is, where all of this started in Alola six years ago from the various reports, the ruins, the Tapus and the people at the Seafolk Village, but he can't help when it comes to what we've planned."

"She has a point," Lionel sighed out, agreeing with her decision to not share the information. Serena sighed in relief at that, breathing out just a little bit.

There was actually another reason that she didn't want to see him quite yet, but she wasn't sure that Lionel or Aidan would understand. Nor did she want them to. In fact, she didn't want them there at all when she met her father. That could only go poorly in the grand scheme of things. There  _was_  one person she absolutely wanted there at that time, though: Ash. Both of them had had their lives affected by Michael, the other Michael, far more than either of them cared for. If they were going to see the one who could be similar or completely different, but with the same face, they would need to do it together.

"Well, anyway," Lillie said, her eyes sliding to Serena and smiling, "it looks like we have a lot of work ahead of us. You said Team Skull has shown up again, right?"

"That's right," Aidan indicated. Everyone straightened up, firming in their resolve. Serena's heart swelled a little, especially with Lillie's eyes shining brightly with determination. Now was never the moment to give up. They were ready to take their next step. "The battle begins anew from this very moment, only this time, we don't have to win the initial skirmish; we just have to achieve our task."

"Yes," Serena indicated. She gazed around the room at all of her friends (and frenemies, she felt she could consider Team Rocket to be). It made her happy to see them all there, gazing with determination, smiling with the happiness of reunion. A month of beating herself up, searching and wondering certain things was by the wayside now. Her own happiness was returning. The final battle. Then the Hope Leilani. Serena grinned internally at the promise she had Professor Kukui deliver to Miss Akela; this reunion made her figure it out…almost. Now there was just one thing left. One person left for her to try and understand.

_I'm almost there, I promise…_ she thought. Lillie looked to her and nodded, the corners of her lips twitching upwards. It was like a chain, she felt; almost similar to what she'd experienced in the Seafolk Village. The doors opened again, and Wicke stepped back inside, looking positively frazzled. No one was with her.

"Miss Wicke, what's wrong?" Gladion asked, placing his hands upon the table. The woman pursed her lips and then placed both of her hands on her hips.

"I've just gotten word from our boat at Hau'oli City," the woman said sternly. "Ash and Kahili never showed up, and it seems that no one has seen them for the last month."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: This was a very heavy information chapter with a lot of stuff going on. Obviously, with a month having passed, things have happened. Some of them don't require details beyond what I've given. Others do. For example, there's not much to know about Clemont and Hau's time at the Battle Tree. But Lillie getting her Z-Ring and the Seafolk Village will be shown later, but that's all I can say. I hope it all transferred over well and that my progression of Serena finding her own answer soon is getting there. She obviously came to one realization about being unable to achieve it on her own at the end of Trials. So, what's the second part?
> 
> Of course, the big question is: where are Ash and Kahili? Has something happened to them? I really wanted to create something different in the sense that Ash hasn't appeared for two chapters now, which is odd when it's his story. I hope you're all enjoying it, though.
> 
> I hope this one meets your expectations. So, until next time, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	3. A Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're continuing with the pace here, so sit tight and please enjoy. Onwards, for Chapter 3!

Chapter 3

A Day

"Ash didn't show up?" Bonnie asked before Serena could even get a word out. She was in a slight state of shock from hearing that. Not that Ash couldn't take care of himself; that much was very obvious at the least. She was simply worried about other things and thoughts regarding him that she hadn't divulged to anyone, not even Lillie. They'd nevertheless been on her mind for some time, on those nights that she was staring at the stars, watching them slowly move towards their convergence.

"Apparently not," Wicke stated, puffing her hair a little in agitation. That was pretty much the same feeling that was pervading every single one of them in the room at her announcement. Serena's hands clenched, trying to calm herself. There was no need to worry about Ash. None at all…though it didn't stop her heart from doing so. "We know for a fact that they arrived in Hau'oli City a month ago and left from there, with the boat returning to the Foundation."

"Is that where it ends, then?" Gladion asked, looking just as confused. On the screen behind them, Clemont and Hau were both leaning in, listening intensely.

"The driver of the boat arrived in the city and waited there since last night, the agreed upon date, but they didn't show. He went to ask around the city and it seems that no one has seen them around the island for the whole month. Like they just vanished," Wicke informed them. It was all very disconcerting at best. Silence settled over them all.

Serena stepped back, trying to think of just where Ash and Kahili could have gone. Surely nothing had happened to them: Kahili was an enormously strong trainer and Ash was no slouch, either, especially with Pikachu by his side. There seemed to really be no area to go on the whole of Melemele that would have been a challenge for them, other than each other. Though it wasn't like she knew every inch of that small island, of course. Either way, no one had heard from them, so it likely had to be someplace secluded. They had to have planned for it if no one had seen them since their arrival, or at the very least not divulged their location.

"Ugh, this boy…" Aidan groaned out with exasperation. Tau once more offered a chuckle, but hardly any words of a helpful nature. Serena wasn't really sure what anyone  _could_  say to help them at this point. "He's the one who suggests that we all meet back up here in a month and then he doesn't even show…"

"I'm sure the twerp has his reasons…" James said, yawning lightly. All of Team Rocket was doing the same, clearly bored with the majority of the proceedings currently taking place.

"Reasons or no, we didn't schedule for a tea party!" the blond snapped angrily. Team Rocket suddenly jumped as Aidan slammed his hand upon the table. Lionel folded his arms, looking down to a fretting Bonnie. Serena, too, was examining the room, as if trying to decide what to say or do in that singular moment. Greninja hardly looked concerned, and given the close bond between he and Ash, it indicated that things were clearly mostly okay. It just left the question of where rather than what?

"No, we didn't, but Ash is the least of our concerns," Lionel finally spoke, reaching up to stroke his chin. Lillie and Bonnie both looked to the man with surprise on their features, but Serena didn't let her expression change. She didn't want to show she was worried, and she also felt like Lionel very much  _would_  say something like that. "I don't mean to belittle him. Far from it. His level of strength and expertise, along with Kahili's would be a great boon for what we're about to attempt, but at the end of the day, it's not nearly important as the information and capabilities we've gathered."

"But the Moon Flute…" Lillie pointed out before stopping herself. She seemed to slip into a state of thought about the whole thing, reaching up to tap her chin a little. "Maybe we don't need Miss Kahili for that…Hm…I guess we could always ask Miss Hapu."

"Or da Seafolk Village people, assuming we can't find dem," Meowth suggested, shrugging like he really didn't care either way. Naturally, it was an act, considering even Team Rocket didn't think the end of the world was a good idea.

"It's an option, but not one we have very much time for," Aidan sighed out. Lionel finally closed his distance across the rest of the room to clap his comrade on the shoulder.

"Come on, Aidan, you'll make us look bad upholding Jack's legacy," the darker-skinned man said to his friend. Aidan regarded him with a skeptical frown. "Ash and Kahili are likely okay, but they're late, and we don't have the time to wait. We need to strike as soon as possible. The Hope Leilani starts in, what, five days? A week? After that we have no time. We need to move now."

"Hau and I will get moving towards the Ruins of Hope, then," Clemont informed them over the screen. Rotom was now freed from Bunnelby's large ears, twisting back and forth like it was stretching. "We'll meet you all there. And remember, hold on to your Z-Crystals. We'll need them if we have any hope of getting through."

"We're on it, Clemont!" Bonnie cried, throwing her hand into the air, still clasping tightly to the Sun Flute.

"I'll join you as well in going there. I think it's important for everyone to see Tapu Fini's shrine," Lillie said, one of her hands playing with the drawstrings on her outfit. "Once we have, we can make our way through the Poni Canyon to the Altar of the Sunne! I think we should do it by dusk tonight or dawn tomorrow, since that was always when Nebby seemed to be the most affected. No matter what, we'll bring you back soon, Nebby!"

"Yay! Yay!" Bonnie cheered loudly. Serena's brow knitted together in contemplation. Her free hand went to the wrist with the blue ribbon upon it, fondling it for a single moment as she thought about the road yet ahead of them.

"I'm going to find Ash," she spoke to the room. No one was surprised, given their reactions. Serena looked over to Greninja, his arms folded as he regarded her. She could tell that he wanted to go along with her, but from his body language, stepping closer to Bonnie, she could also tell that he was willing to fulfill his duty before a personal obligation.

"I think that's for the best," Lionel agreed. He separated and turned towards all of them, his own fingers playing with his charm bracelet. "Right now, we're the only ones standing to make a strike on the altar preemptively."

"Well, Steven and Gary plan to be prepared for an aerial assault for backup, and there's the League forces," Clemont corrected. Lionel easily handwaved the entire issue.

"Regardless, if we want this to succeed, we need to move now, before Lusamine's eye from within the Ultra Space can fix back on us, you understand? Not to mention there's the timing that Lillie's mentioned, and I agree with it. So, if we want Ash and Kahili's help, we'll need to find them while the rest of us make our move, got it?"

"Perfectly," Gladion grunted out. Next to him, Silvally growled a little. "I'll head to Melemele with Serena. If we're going to split, none of us should go alone."

"Then I'll remain behind to coordinate efforts between each other and the League using the IRCS," Aidan stated with a sigh, pushing his glasses up just a little. "Tau, you can call Chi and Theta back here if you'd so like. We may want all the forces we can get."

"Understood, sir," Tau said, offering a light bow and a clap on Serena's shoulder before he began to make his way out of the room. Serena looked across to Gladion, searching his face for a reason that he would want to go with her. They were hardly close as individuals, after all. Though, that might have explained it. Ash and Gladion had both seemed close, and maybe now Gladion wanted to try and reclaim what was lost between them in the battle against Skull and Aether.

"Well, if the twerpette is going, we might as well go, too," Jessie sighed out, like it was something to be resigned to.

"All da better to nab Pika-mmph!" James had quickly slapped a hand on Meowth's flapping lips, chuckling nervously underneath it. Serena looked to Bonnie and Lillie, rolling their eyes together at the trio's familiar antics. Lionel stepped forward, placing a hand upon the table with confidence.

"Our course is set, then! Lillie, Bonnie and myself, along with Squishy and them, will head for the rendezvous on Poni Island to meet with Clemont and Hau at the Ruins of Hope. Once we're together, we'll make for the Altar of the Sunne to secure it as best we can by sunrise the latest," he informed them all without a shred of a smile. This was the time to be serious; the time for games was long past now. "Meanwhile, Serena, Gladion and Team Rocket will attempt to find Ash. We'll give you until the end of the day before you need to get to Poni Island and find the Moon Flute. That's the only way we'll meet that deadline. Aidan will stay behind to coordinate efforts.

"From this moment forward, our moment of preemptive striking begins!"

"Yes, sir!" They all called, some of them (namely Lillie, Bonnie and an on-screen Hau) snapping themselves into a salute. It wasn't quite the same as the large army they possessed before the battle at Geosenge, but that hardly seemed to matter. What they lacked in numbers, they made up for in determination. Well, that and actual preparation for the battle ahead, despite a time limit being imposed upon them from this moment.

"All right, everyone. Let's do this thing!" Hau said, jumping up and down next to Clemont before racing to grab their bags. Lillie shook her head with a giggle at his overexuberance.

"We'll see you on Poni, Bonnie, Lillie. Find Ash, Serena!" That was all Clemont had time to tell them before Rotom terminated the connection, leaving the screen blank. Gladion was already walking out of the room, Wicke walking alongside him as Silvally followed after haughtily. Knowing that the blond would meet them down by the boats this time, Serena looked to Lionel.

"I promise I'll find Ash and we'll be on Poni by sundown," she said confidently. "It shouldn't take too long."

"It almost sounds like you're underestimating Ash," Lillie admitted and Bonnie nodded. Dedenne snored on top of her head, having fallen asleep long ago. Nevertheless, Serena kept her gaze firmly on Lionel as he smiled a little, though it transitioned to a smirk.

"I have no doubt of that. Should everything go well, we'll move into the canyon tonight and have the altar secured by sunrise. Like we keep saying, given its name, I'm pretty sure it'd be best to be there during the daytime and its transition to that time, so long as we have the Moon Flute by then."

"Leave it to me," Serena insisted, thumping her chest. A clattering of footsteps said that Team Rocket was standing at attention and nodding furiously. Having Lionel's blessing to get moving, Serena looked to Lillie and Bonnie. The reunion with the short lemon blonde had been all too brief, though Bonnie seemed to be taking it in stride. She wasn't the same girl from the start of their journey. Not that Bonnie had ever been timid, but she seemed here like she was fine with the parting, knowing that they'd reunite in the end. Even Squishy seemed to be nodding at her. "We'll join up for the fight soon."

"I'll look after Bonnie," Lillie said, grinning a little to the younger girl as they slapped their hands together. "Bonnie will look after me, too."

"You bet!" That said, Serena surged forward and took them into a very brief and momentary hug. Lillie hugged back instantly while Bonnie gripped to Serena's arm until they separated. Lionel was already striding out of the room, leaving the girls and their Pokémon as pretty much the only remaining ones, barring Aidan.

"Nin!" Greninja croaked out. "Ninja gren gren!"

"Don't worry about a thing, Greninja," Serena assured him, her hand splayed on her chest. "I'll bring him back just fine. You just stay with them and make sure they get to the altar on time. You, too, Squishy."

"Blrbl?" Squishy said, choosing to not opt for actually speaking. The honey blonde reached forward, patted the little blob on the head and faced away to Team Rocket, who looked at her with their own sharp nods. Then those three left the room. With their departure, Bonnie and Lillie turned as well, taking hands with each other. Serena ran her hand upwards, brushing aside some of her bangs as she offered a nod to Aidan and then left the room at a slower pace.

She hadn't noticed before, but in terms of the mansion, nothing had really changed. Maybe a few portraits on the wall had, or just Gladion removing any traces of his mother from the halls, but otherwise, it was largely untouched. Especially the courtyard hadn't really changed at all. In some way, it was a sign that though some things changed, a lot remained the same, as well. Serena breathed in, reflecting back on their month of growth. She hoped Ash had done so as well, because she felt like she was about to clasp on to the answer that she promised Miss Akela she'd find. There were just a few things in her mind to confirm what was building in her heart.

"Are you ready?" Gladion's sudden question made her jerk to a stop. He was standing there at the intersection of the two corridors. Serena blinked, realizing he had changed his clothing from the khaki pants and black-colored collared shirt. Once more he was dressed in the clothes she was used to seeing him in, only they looked repaired, the rips and tears sewn up. He looked far more comfortable now.

"Yes," she confirmed and the two began their lazily slow walk towards the exit from the manor. The boy said nothing, shoving his hands in his pockets. It was a little chilly between them, even with Silvally trotting alongside them with a growl (or perhaps because of that). "So, if none of us have spoken with Ash, does that mean…?"

"We haven't either," Gladion said, his voice low. It was all the answer she needed: they had left each other the exact same way they had been since Po Town. Their connection was broken once more. It made Serena a little sad, but at the same time, Gladion hoping to go with her said something about him wanting to at least try and fix that. "Nor have I had the time to…I've been so focused on completing the trials and rebuilding Aether, it's a wonder I've had time for sleep, much less anything else."

"Guess we've all been busy in our own way," Serena admitted. To that, Gladion just nodded. She had nothing much left to say, her eyes sliding over to the very reticent Silvally, its white plume of hair sticking out and making it look impressive. "So, it's sort of like Null evolved, huh?"

"In a way, I guess," Gladion noted, seeing her take an interest. He reached over and patted Silvally on the head. "We were battling Nanu on Ula'ula and he was getting a little too into the battle, like he was testing me, when his Persian smashed Null's mask. For a moment, I thought everything was going to go to hell, but he changed, and now he's this. The Z-Ring helped things, too. My father had theorized on the change, considering it was Null's unconstrained form, but calling him Full would have been weird. So, I went with Silvally…he  _is_  my ally after all."

"I think it's nice," Serena giggled out, placing a hand to her lips as the duo finally exited from the manor and began walking down the sun-dappled path. Up above, Serena noticed that the glass had all been fixed from the battle a month ago. Thinking on that brought a downturn to her lips. "If I'm honest…I'm a little worried about Ash."

"I'm sure he's okay," Gladion said, puffing out. Either he didn't want to talk about him, or maybe he was just apprehensive about running into Ash again. The last time they had directly met, he  _had_  socked him across the face. It seemed to now be a good thing that Team Rocket would be coming along to ease the tensions. "Ash isn't going to let some wild Pokémon chomp down on him."

"That's not what I'm worried about," Serena sighed out. This time, she managed to get Gladion to look at her. "You were there: both of you lost to Guzma in the same way I lost to Lusamine."

"Yeah…still leaves a bad taste in my mouth," Gladion spat out. It pretty much proved her theory. Not that Ash was someone who held on to those sorts of losses and grudges for a long time, but there was more to it than all that, she felt. "I guess I can understand, but that's what he's training with Kahili for, isn't it?"

"I think it's more than that," Serena expressed. The two had managed to reach the elevator now as it finished returning to the top for them, after having taken the others down. They stepped on and Gladion used a keycard to make the device move downward once more. "I feel like Ash has been lost lately. Confused. I mean, I'm not there all the time, but just some of the things he's said, or the way he's reacted…all the little things. Hala made him question his own dream, I feel, and it's been weighing on his mind, especially when Nanu asked him the same sort of thing."

"Then Guzma came along," Gladion breathed out, clearly understanding, at this point, what she was getting at. "Yeah…I know the two of us losing was a real blow to me, and it made me wonder what I had done everything for; if I was strong enough. If Ash was already questioning himself…"

"I'm just worried that he might sink to a point he can't get out of," Serena admitted. It was truly her biggest fear. Ash wasn't the kind of person to let it happen, but she still thought that if he met an object that was immoveable enough, no amount of pushing forward was going to help him.

"I wouldn't worry too much," Gladion expressed to her after a moment of silence. "He seems to have a way of figuring things out."

"Mm," Serena said, obviously believing that Gladion considered the entire conversation finished. He was right, of course, but Serena still couldn't help that sense of trepidation as the elevator slowed and deposited them at the harbor. Ash was confused, and she simply didn't want him to shut down over not knowing who he was or what everything meant to him; or worse, keep going until he destroyed himself. It was something they were all struggling with, but Ash was no doubt the most stubborn of them all. "You're right. I'm sure it'll be okay."

"Exactly. For now, let's focus on finding him. It isn't quite midday yet, so we have plenty of time, so long as we work out a plan."

"Right," Serena agreed as the two walked away from the elevator and towards the boat that they would be taking to Melemele. She threw aside her worries, choosing to face them when they reunited rather than now, and soon boarded the boat, facing out towards the sea.  _I'm coming for you, Ash. Please be okay._

* * *

True to Gladion's words, the boat cut across the waters in relatively record time. The one to Poni had left ahead of their group with not even a goodbye (not that Serena minded, since they'd be meeting up sooner or later in the first place), but their own trip was fraught with a sense of worry. Even Team Rocket, for all their blustering and pretending, seemed a little worried. Or, that was her interpretation when the Hau'oli harbor was fast approaching a little less than an hour later and the three (or four, counting Wobbuffet…more if she counted their Pokémon) were huddled together.

"I mean sure, the twerp can be all hyperactive and running off, but come on!" Jessie said in a harsh whisper. "Pikachu, at least, is smart enough to hold the twerp from doing something stupid."

"I'm sure the twerp is fine," James also insisted, his face drawn into one of worry. "We just have to find him, right? Do we have any contacts?"

"Maybe I have a sizeable fanbase that I could mobilize!"

"Dream on, Jess," Meowth said. "Remember, ya never won on Melemele." Jessie smacked her companion over the top of the head.

"Don't talk about that, Meowth," she snapped back at him. Meowth cradled the top of his head and grumbled at her before the magenta-haired woman threw her head back with a rather obvious groan. "Ugh, even when he's not blasting us off, the twerp is causing problems."

"Yeah, but without him, we'd be out of a job…or, well, we'd lose our drive, right?"

"Jimmy is right," Meowth said, nodding sagely. The Pokémon also seemed to nod…except for Crabrawler and Inkay, who were sharing a berry covered croissant (where they'd gotten it from, Serena had no idea). "If it weren't for da twoip and Pikachu all dese years, we'd probably be sittin' back at base gettin' fat!"

Serena finally shook her head, peeling away from their rather inane conversation that did little more than prove how much the two seemed to care about Ash and Pikachu. Breathing in, she approached the edge of the boat with Gladion, the boy in sharpened silence as the docks of Hau'oli City began to approach on the horizon. No one was waiting for them there, but Serena had no problem with that; there were still a few areas that they could check for aid. Melemele wasn't that large of an island, after all, and with the right equipment, they could travel it in no time.

"All right, guys, I'll be staying here," the driver called as soon as he turned the engine off, leaving them right in a prime position to debark. Silvally was the first, leaping high over the railing to get on to the docks. Some little kids nearby pointed and stared, but Gladion and his Pokémon ignored them while they made their way off.

"Hopefully we'll be back soon!" Serena said, mostly to ensure the man that they had all understood, before disembarking on to Hau'oli City once again.

It was a strange feeling, setting foot on to that peacefully small island. For all of her searching for her father, this was the only island that they had not come back to, having had no need. Just like the last time they'd been there it was thriving with bustling people and Pokémon as they walked forward, still as calming as ever. At the same time, she could feel the hairs on the back of her neck tingling. It could have been some kind of 'soulmate' connection, or something else entirely, but she definitely knew that Ash was here. She'd be seeing him very soon.

"Any idea where to start, then?" Gladion asked. Serena walked a little forward, glancing upwards and into the distance, where Iki Town sat. She sucked in a breath and exhaled it, turning to her rather assorted gaggle of companions.

"I have a thought, at least," she said with a smile. Gladion seemed to consider that good enough, sticking his hands into his pockets and indicating for her to take the lead. "And Team Rocket, behave yourselves, okay?"

"Hey, we've been very good the last month!" James protested loudly.

"We just want to see the twerp, all right! We can't help it if the people here don't like us very much," Jessie chose to insist, though her nervous twitching indicated that she very much cared. Meowth just sighed and chose to not refute anything. Instead, he prompted Wobbuffet to walk forward with him.

"Right, come on!" Serena said cheerily and she began to run off through the streets, gripping tightly to her bag straps. Despite some groans of physical exertion from Team Rocket, they all followed after her, winding her way through the rather familiar metropolis (or as close to one that Alola could get). Some people greeted her as genially as possible, and Serena returned the waves and greetings of "alola" as she ran, turning past the Pokémon Center and racing for the edge of town. All too soon, the paved roads began to turn to dirt as the familiar sight of the Pokémon School rapidly came into view.

She hadn't expected this particular sight, but as they came closer, she noticed Ilima was outside there, reading a book as the children played outside.

"Ilima!" she called out. Some of the kids were distracted, staring at her in interest, but none of them could beat the pink-haired man, who looked up and right at her. A soft smile graced his features and he closed his book quietly, moving to stand. She finished running right up to him. "It's good to see you again!"

"Yes, and certainly unexpected for me," the man said. He offered no gesture of greeting, unless one counted a nod of acknowledgement to Gladion. "Last I had heard from Kahuna Hala, you were gathering at the Aether Foundation."

"So, you know about all that, too," Gladion commented, folding his arms as he stared at the captain. Ilima nodded, prompting the blond to sigh just a little bit. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised. We  _did_  involve the Kahunas, so it's no great shock that the captains would be planning to get involved."

"Indeed," was Ilima's rather curt response. "We're already more than involved, considering our own plans for the Day of Stars, should the initial strike fail. Unfortunately, we can't seem to be involved before then…"

Serena's lips thinned a little, thinking and wondering. She knew that the Tapus weren't planning on intervening with the preemptive strike, but would on the Day of Stars…it made her wonder if, perhaps, nature was conspiring against them in that case, or if it was all simply moving to its own schedule, regardless of human machinations. Either way, she considered it a blessing that the captains were still considering helping out alongside the Kahunas.

"It's unimportant. Hopefully we'll succeed regardless," Gladion said, glancing back in the direction they had come from. Ilima once more nodded and looked to Serena carefully.

"So, if you're all preparing…why are you on Melemele instead of Poni Island?"

"Oh…right," Serena sighed out, laced with little chuckles as she did so. "Ash never showed up at our meeting. We know he came to Melemele, but beyond that, no one truly seems to know where he is, along with Kahili. So, I was planning on taking us to Iki Town and asking Hala, since he seems to know everything about whatever is going on with the island."

"Hala is always well-informed, even if he doesn't share all the information with us that would be entirely pertinent," Ilima agreed. One of his hands flew to his hair, playing with the pendant there, glittering in the sun. "But Hala left Iki Town late last night and has yet to return."

"Oh…" Serena said, feeling slightly deflated. She soon felt a hand on her shoulder and saw Gladion's stern expression. In the absence of Ash, it was like a reminder to never give up. She smiled. If Hala had left the town, but not the island, then it was possible… "Do you know where he went?"

"I personally don't," Ilima insisted to her, but he didn't stop there, "however, I'm sure he told Kukui, who came back in last night and crashed at his lab. They've all been working tirelessly for the Day of Stars and the League."

"I'd imagine. Thanks, Ilima," Serena said, offering him a smile and turning towards the forest. She instantly started forward, leading the others with her in the direction of where the path split from Iki Town.

"Down by the beach, Serena!" Ilima called calmly. "That's where you'll find the lab, all right?"

"Got it!" With those words of thanks and farewell, their group of five set off once more. She threw a look back to Ilima, who was folding his arms with a concerned expression, gazing back towards the school, but neither shared any further words. Serena just plunged into the forest, dappled with sunlight as they ran through the area in record time to emerge outside of it. Naturally, it seemed much shorter than it had all the other times she traveled through, though that could have been the speed at which they were tracking.

Before long, Serena found their group at the crossroads. Usually, she would have taken the road directly to her left, leading up the hill to where Iki Town rested. This time, however, she turned right and began walking that particular, and unfamiliar, dirt path. Surprisingly, Team Rocket was keeping pace with her (not without grumbles, of course), though the surprise mostly stemmed from the fact that they would usually use the Meowth Balloon more than once to get to difficult places.

Their feet soon and suddenly touched down upon the encroaching beach before them, stretching forward a good ways unto the ocean that glistened in the midday sun. Far to her right was a large mountain, small holes for sunlight breaking it up, like it wasn't quite a mountain, but more of an encapsulated hill. Most importantly was the house, boarded-up and slightly uneven on the sands, sitting in the middle of the beach. Serena could only guess that this was Kukui's lab. She straightened her back and ran forward towards it.

A sudden rumbling trembled through the area, and though Serena's feet didn't stop, her progress slowed a little as she looked in the direction of the gigantic hill. The sounds and rumbles were most definitely coming from there, yet most of the Pokémon weren't even reacting, as though all of this was natural. It was either disturbing or amusing, but Serena couldn't decide which. She pressed on, making her way towards the lab. As she neared the front, she noticed that someone, or two someones, were on the porch, lounging rather comfortably. It was easy to tell, the closer they got, that it was Kukui and his Gallade.

They were barely even reacting to the tremors. From the sight of that, she didn't quite want to wake them from their sunbathing nap, but knowing they'd get nowhere if she didn't, the honey-blonde stepped on to the porch with clomping footsteps. Gallade cracked an eye open.

"Gall Gallade," the Blade Pokémon said, raising his elongated arms to nudge his trainer. Kukui stirred, but only managed to push his hat down over his eyes, like he didn't want to be woken. "Lade lade gall!"

"Oh, just a couple minutes more, Gallade…we have to get moving soon thanks to Master Hala's request, so let me-"

"Just wake up already, lazy professor!" Jessie snapped. Patience was still not one of her strong suits, no matter what the situation was. Kukui finally cracked an eye open at this point and lifted his hat up to see just who was there. He seemed to not even notice Team Rocket there, but his gaze widened upon the sight of Gladion. The blond nodded at the professor, and it caused the man to sit up straight and then look over to where Serena was standing.

"Hi, Professor Kukui. Sorry to wake you," she insisted, touching her palms together with an apologetic smile. Kukui yawned widely, taking off his hat to run his hand through his hair while he smiled.

"Nah, it's nothing," the man replied. He stood, Gallade going with him as he did so. His hands lowered themselves into his lab coat now while his expression changed to one of puzzlement. "Wait…Serena? Gladion? Team Rocker?"

"It's Rocket!" the three of them corrected him instantly. He ignored them, like usual. Serena decided to avoid the inevitable question and answered directly from the very beginning.

"Ash and Kahili never showed up at the rendezvous," she said simply. Gladion clearly decided to chime in, himself.

"Neither did you," he noted. To that, Kukui laughed, like it was no big deal. It really wasn't one, since they had still been able to procure everything they needed, and there had never seemed to be an agreement that the professor would meet up with them in the first place. Kukui seemed to realize this, because he didn't adopt an apologetic expression even once. "Anyway, Ash never showed up and no one knows where he is except for being on Melemele, so we came here to find him and Kahili. For the Moon Flute."

"Knew I was forgetting to do something," Kukui said just before yawning loudly again. He looked pretty exhausted, though Serena figured it had something to do with jetlag more than the current situation they were all finding themselves in. "I was supposed to tell the boat driver that he'd be delayed, but I was so exhausted from my trip to Kalos that I fell asleep…Akela did warn me about not sleeping on the plane."

"So, you know where he is?" Serena asked simply. At first, Kukui only grinned, but he soon followed it up with a more verbal answer.

"Ah, yeah…though I was only told by Master Hala last night. That man loves to keep his secrets close when he's asked to," the professor admitted. It made sense to Serena: the only person who could have actually effectively answered was also the one who had happened to fall asleep from his trip. It wasn't the most ideal, but…

"Wait, you were  _supposed_  to say he'd be coming late?" she asked. Kukui dispensed with the grin and finished stretching himself in order to leap over his railing and onto the sand (which happened to puff up into Team Rocket's faces).

"That's a thing for later," the professor said, beckoning them all forward. Before Serena could get another word in edgewise, the man was walking across the beach, towards the hill in the distance, and the mouth of a cave there that led inward. "Right now, you want to see Ash, don't you? Come on."

"Honestly," Gladion scoffed, shaking his head. Serena shared in the sentiments as the two followed after the somewhat flighty professor, Silvally padding alongside them, almost looking eager. She understood that he was busy with all the preparations for what was about to occur, but forgetting a detail as important as Ash arriving to the rendezvous late was something that she felt shouldn't have escaped him (though, exhaustion wasn't the worst excuse). Nevertheless, they followed after him.

More tremors shook the area, startling her once more, while Gladion laughed at it. He didn't offer any explanation for the strange event, but continued onward as they approached the cave at the base of the hill. The mountainous form soon loomed above them in an almost ominous fashion, but none of that deterred Kukui. He did, however, look back for a second. "Serena, you'll want Braixen. It gets a little dark until we reach the flower field."

"Okay," Serena noted, quickly calling out her all too faithful Pokémon. Braixen's stick was lit aflame with a smile, while behind her, Gourgeist brightened up like a nightlight as their entire group entered into the mouth of the cave. The wall was splashed with light, allowing them to have a guide of where to go, even if Kukui appeared to know the way forward rather well. "So…he's here…?"

"So I was told," Kukui admitted, showing that he wasn't quite as knowledgeable as she'd thought. Either way, he was pretty confident. "Did everything go smoothly at the Foundation for the attack? I wanted to be there, but the League called for me and Akela…"

"Everything's fine," Gladion answered simply. "By tomorrow morning, we should hopefully be pulling everything off. Or that's Lionel's assumption, at the very least. The only things in our way are Ash and Kahili's absence and…"

"Dose bozos from Team Skull," Meowth elaborated. Instead of looking like it was obvious, Kukui's face tightened, and Serena wondered if it had to do with his reasons for stating Ash would be late. She also had to think about Kukui's mention of Miss Akela.

"Mmm, well, I'm sure everything should go fine," Kukui expressed. "After I'm done here, I need to be getting to Mount Lanakila, but you guys and ARC seem to be well-prepared. I'm sure after the last month here, Ash should be pretty well prepared. From what Master Hala tells me, their training battles have almost been nothing short of titanic."

"That's Ash, going in one hundred percent on pretty much everything," Serena expressed with a laugh. Next to her, Braixen was nodding in agreement. Kukui happened to grin at that, his eyes searching her for some kind of statement. The only thing she could think of was that it was in regards to the declaration she'd asked him to deliver to Akela. The one she was close to answering. Kukui seemed to understand this state of her mind, because he didn't look for long.

"I would think he'd need to. You know, this used to actually be a trial site a long time ago," Kukui pointed out. Serena's eyebrows flew upward. The tremors were growing louder now. More than that, a few shouts seemed to be peppered throughout at this point, but they sounded like mere gibberish. "It's no surprise a Flying type trainer like Kahili would choose here, either, since it's the only place Flynium-Z can be found. It's like a different kind of trial for Ash, I guess, but hardly official. Plus, it's the one place on Melemele where things can just get  _savage_."

"Let's just get to the twerp…" James sighed out. To that, Serena was in agreement and she picked up her pace, walking past even Kukui at the sight of the beckoning light that was up ahead. Unable to stop herself, her feet flew across the rock, getting a whiff of the flower field that lay beyond. The shouts were clearer now, and much more distinct as being those belonging to her boyfriend and his teacher.

"Sky Uppercut, let's go!" Serena felt a smile blossoming all over her face. It was Ash! He was actually here! And what was more, he was battling!  _So typical…_

"Steel Wing, block it!" Kahili's voice was just as sharp and commanding as ever, and Serena finally ran out into the light. The rock turned to grass beneath her feet and she didn't stop until she saw the sight of the two combatants in the middle of the large hilltop. Her eyes widened, especially when Gladion stopped right next to her, blinking rapidly.

It was definitely Ash, but he looked different. His hat was discarded, having fallen atop Pikachu's head, and his hair was fluttering in the wind. It was still as unruly as ever, but no longer than before, if less tamed than it had been prior to the month apart. Then, there were the bruises on his body, some covered up with bandages while others were not. Near to him were most of the members of his team, looking thoroughly exhausted, themselves; even Pikachu, who rested against Toucannon, despite his cheers. In front of Ash, however, was a Pokémon that Serena had never seen. It was large and scaly, like a majestic, bipedal dragon.

"A Kommo-o," Kukui noted, coming up behind Serena and Gladion. Ash didn't hear or see them, too into the match he was having to even register another's presence. "Looks like Ash's Hakamo-o has evolved in the last month. They must have been training  _real_  hard."

"I would hope so," grumbled a voice to the side. Serena leaned forward and looked to see Hala sitting cross-legged on a rock as he watched the battle. At this moment, she also noticed how much of the area was ringed with various Pokémon, particularly some Lycanroc and Rockruff that were watching the match enthusiastically. "After having me direct them here, help to prevent either of them from leaving and then keep it all a secret, anything less would be disappointing. Although, they've already been battling for nearly twenty-four hours on this single six-on-six match alone."

"That long? !" Jessie and James yelled.

"Wobba wobb wobba!"

"Dey're not human…"

"I'm sure they've taken a break for some food and rest…" Gladion stated with a roll of his eyes. He took a moment before muttering under his breath, "I hope…"

Serena could only stare in awe at the sight of the two trainers before them. It was obvious that Hala had come to watch the battle to its fruition, and it must have been intense prior to their arrival, given his piercing and focused gaze on the action. Kahili was leaning on one of her golf clubs, numerous bruises all over her body, as well. They had to have beaten each other up immensely. Casting her gaze around, Serena noticed numerous other golf clubs, bent or broken, along with a multitude of branches. Then there were the resting Pokémon: four on each side. Their battle wasn't even finished yet…

"Let's finish this, Kommo-o! X-Scissor!" Serena turned to look at her boyfriend and felt a blush rise into her cheeks without prompting. He looked quite rugged and handsome this way, other than the bruises, but she knew those would heal.

"Komohhhhh!" the large dragon cried out, crossing his fists in front of himself and running for Skarmory. There was a purple glow flying from his arms as he ran, while Skarmory remained fixed there.

"Hit it with Steel Wing," Kahili said, straightening herself and planting her golf club into the ground. Skarmory floated back for just a moment before spinning and sending itself careening for Kommo-o, its wing a blinding white. The two clashed, the attacks straining against one another. A large gust of wind blasted outward, causing Serena to tamp down her skirt. Around them, the Pokémon, including both Ash's team and those ringing the area, were all cheering loudly. There was no wonder as to how the mountain had been shaking and trembling at this point. It was a battle of titanic proportions.

"Clanging Scales!" Ash called, punching forward. Kommo-o seemed to grin, at least from what Serena saw, and its scales quivered. A loud sound was made like a banging on pots and pans, but more eclectic and even louder than before. Suddenly, some of the scales on Kommo-o's figure flew outward, blasting against Skarmory with explosive force. Those scales seemed to instantly grow back upon Kommo-o's body while Skarmory was pushed back. "Now, Sky Uppercut!"

"Koh!" Kommo-o roared, one of its fists slamming upward with a glow that nailed Skarmory's midsection and sent it spiraling into the sky, twirling through it. Kahili didn't look all too worried; of course, neither did Ash. That they must have grown to learn each other's strategies on an intricate level over the last month was Serena's quick and obvious conclusion.

"Air Cutter!" the sky blue-haired woman commanded. Skarmory put its spiraling to good use, spinning around and sending the sharp and rotating blades of pure wind out towards Kommo-o. Said dragon shifted his foot back a bit, his gaze upon Ash. Serena's boyfriend nodded.

"Block it with Poison Jab!" he said, a small grin on his face. Kommo-o went to work, both of his fists glowing purple as he struck forward. They flew forward at an immense speed, knocking into the blades that made up the Air Cutter. Next to her, Gladion was actually grinning at the sight of the battle, almost like he was imagining battling Ash, himself. Serena wasn't sure what to think, other than how much Ash must have improved in the last month, though she supposed that they all had in their own way. Skarmory was diving down, a silvery light forming in its mouth before it fired and nailed Kommo-o. "Clanging Scales, again!"

"Not this time, Ash," Kahili said, her lips twitching upwards into a smirk. She brought her arms up, and Serena noticed the Z-Ring around her wrist, a blue glow upon it. Like with every Z-Move (as she was most familiar with), Kahili then uncrossed her arms and crossed them again. From there, her movement changed, as did Skarmory's. Her arms became like wings, flapping themselves before she fell and sprung right up, her fist in the air. "Supersonic Skystrike!"

"Finally!" Ash gasped out. Skarmory suddenly brimmed with the light of a Z-Move before shooting upward, causing part of the ground to ripple. It spun through the air, twisting with powerful speed before changing direction and aiming right for Kommo-o. "I've been trying to get you to use that move all battle! Get ready Kommo-o, just like we've practiced with Passimian!"

"Passi!" Passimian agreed, cheering his compatriot on as he stamped the ground with his berry. Kommo-o prepared himself and Skarmory dove forward at a near sonic speed that ripped up the dirt of the field. Then, just as the metal bird was about to make impact, Kommo-o struck forward with a Sky Uppercut. Both attacks made their marks, colliding with one another at high impact and causing the ground to go blasting apart around the two Pokémon. Team Rocket screamed, though it was hardly heard over the sound of the explosion. Serena only had widened eyes, and they got wider when she saw the result: both Skarmory and Kommo-o were down.

"Well, then…didn't see that coming," Kahili spat out, but she seemed to be grinning with it. Hala shifted on his placement, feet coming down to place themselves on the ground.

"This next battle should be short, then," he mumbled. Serena wasn't sure what to make of that, so she just continued to watch. Ash and Kahili had both approached their Pokémon, helping them off to the side to join the rest of their teams. Pikachu and Passimian were the first to greet Kommo-o, who nodded wearily while Ash tossed him a Sitrus Berry. Neither trainer had noticed their party guests yet, too involved in the battle.

"Well, then, let's settle this, huh?" Kahili called out, tossing her final pokeball out. Ash did too, and Serena watched as Kahili's Toucannon and Ash's Decidueye emerged. Both already looked exhausted, like they had taken part in the battle before. Hala's words made complete sense.

"His team's gotten a lot stronger, huh, Silvally?" Gladion asked of his partner Pokémon. Silvally growled, pawing at the ground with anticipation. Even Kukui was chuckling, all of their gazes riveted on the battlefield.

"Decidueye, use Spirit Shackle!" Serena's eyes narrowed; Ash was up to something, considering Toucannon's typing and his use of a Ghost type move. Kahili must have thought the same, because she looked skeptical. Decidueye changed his position a little, drawing back on his wing like an archer. A ghostly arrow was formed and then shot outwards for Toucannon, who didn't even move to avoid it…at least, not at first.

"Get moving," Kahili ordered. Toucannon took to the air, flying around at a rapid speed. Decidueye didn't stop firing, continually shooting arrow after arrow on Ash's orders, even as Toucannon turned towards him. "Now, Bullet Seed!"

"Blast it away!" Ash called. Serena had to laugh. It made sense now. Toucannon reared back and began firing the array of seeds towards Decidueye in a spraying motion. Decidueye didn't stop, his arrows' aim true. They impacted with the Grass type attack, causing them to explode in midair. He had only been using it to pick up the speed and accuracy of the move! "Now, let's do it, Decidueye! We've been working on this move forever, and I think we can make it work right now!"

"Deroo!" Decidueye hooted out, and though Serena couldn't see his face, she could tell how determined he was. Ash plunged his hand down, a grin upon his face while Decidueye moved to do the same thing.

"Frenzy Plant!"

"The twerp has a super-powered move like  _that_? !" Jessie and James yelled at the same time. Decidueye's wing swept along the ground and gnarly, thick vines suddenly burst from the ground, dirt flying everywhere. Toucannon managed to avoid the first of them, only for the second to smack into him. More than that, Serena noticed that Decidueye had managed to vanish.

"And here I was hoping it wouldn't work," Kahili scoffed out. She reached up to remove her golfing cap, letting her long, periwinkle blue hair flow out behind her. She gripped her golf club, and Ash tensed. Then…she started running at him!

"Leaf Blade!" Ash cried, just before Kahili could reach him. It was almost insane to watch. Kahili swung the golf club at him, but he managed to pull himself back, avoiding the swing. At the same time, Decidueye appeared, hanging from one of the lingering branches of the writhing Frenzy Plant. He tossed his blades and they impacted with Toucannon, sending it careening. "Now, Acrobatics!"

"Beak Blast!" Ash grimaced, but reached his arm out to catch the golf club and pull it closer, knocking his head against his mentor. She barely flinched. The bruises made sense now.

"Pull back the second the force hits," Ash cried. Decidueye was zipping forward with his blue glow. The attack's force rippled through the vines, cutting those around them away as it slammed into Toucannon's beak. The red-hot beak glowed brightly and Decidueye altered his course, leaping behind one of the vines as he slid down. Then Toucannon's beak exploded. Decidueye was caught in the blast, flying forwards towards Ash and Kahili. The plants all flew upwards and away, Decidueye's hiding place now completely removed.

"Bullet Seed, one more time!" Kahili yelled. She seemed pretty confident, but Ash wasn't losing his telltale grin from battle. Serena watched him a moment, trying to discern his actions a little better. He had definitely grown stronger, and his battle strategy was as impeccable as ever…but there seemed to be something missing. It made whatever she had worried about earlier, grow.

"Defend yourself with Leaf Blade!" Ash yelled. Decidueye made no noise, and not even his wings did as he drew his glowing green blades and began to slash them back and forth with incredible speed, knocking the seeds away. Kahili yelled a command, but Serena had been focusing too much on her boyfriend to hear it. The move became rather obvious, however, when Toucannon's body blazed blue and shot for Decidueye once more. "Block it now!"

"Kooroo!" The blades crossed themselves as Toucannon made impact, sending the grass rippling around them. Decidueye looked to be struggling, though both of the battling Pokémon were more than exhausted. Then, Ash screamed a command and Decidueye's talon flew upwards with a blue glow, slamming into Toucannon and breaking it off.

"Now, Frenzy Plant and Leaf Blade, one more time!" Ash cried, finally ripping the golf club away from Kahili and sending it flying off to the side where it smashed against a rock. Decidueye's wing swept the ground and the writhing roots emerged, slamming into Toucannon before encapsulating it and trapping it there. The Arrow Quill Pokémon leapt upwards, drawing both green blades and then throwing them straight at his opponent before drawing another pair and slicing right through him. The exploding and collapsing plants spelled the end of the battle, debris from the roots floating up into the air.

Toucannon fell with the roots, slamming into the ground with an utterly dazed expression, and a gasp of, "Toucah…"

"Well…damn…" Kahili said, done trying to hit Ash by this point, her faculties more focused on watching her fallen Pokémon. She broke away and ran to its side while Decidueye dropped next to Ash. Her boyfriend looked unsteady a moment, and then he fell to his knees. "I thought we had you when I got Pikachu to use Gigavolt Havoc…"

"We won…?" Ash asked, completely oblivious to Kahili's statements. He suddenly started to laugh, flinging his fists into the air from his position. His other Pokémon all joined in on the action, making a beeline for him. Lycanroc reached there first, almost tackling him. "We won!"

"Pipikachu!" Pikachu cried and Ash began to laugh. Serena stepped forward, but found her eyes looking at Hala. The Kahuna was nodding, though there was no smile on his lips. It felt a bit like a confirmation of what she'd seen earlier. Ash was stronger, there was no doubt…but it almost seemed like beyond his purpose of wanting to protect everyone, he didn't know what the strength was even for. Although, his improved ability to remain unfettered in the moment of someone attacking him or whatnot was certainly admirable.

"A whole month…we finally beat her after a whole month…" Ash breathed out. Kahili was approaching him now, a small crystal in her hand that she flicked upward in an arc. Ash's hand reached up and snatched it.

"Nice job. You've completed training, I guess," she said. Ash just continued to exhale in complete relief, laughing a little. It definitely rang hollow in Serena's ears. She didn't like the sound of it, so she decided to change it, especially as she approached and could see his filthy visage from a whole day's worth of battling. He didn't quite notice her as she approached, though Kahili did, blinking and looking away to everyone else. Her face adopted a sheepish expression and she backed away.

Then, Serena stopped and dug into her bag, pulling out a handkerchief, holding it out towards him; it wasn't the one that had brought them together, but the memory was more than enough. His Pokémon turned and saw her, but didn't say anything right away.

"Oh, than…" Ash stopped, gazing at the handkerchief and then looking up until he saw her. She smiled down at him, and he made no movement or expression for a moment. Pikachu was the first.

"Pipika!" he cried, jumping towards her. Her hand dropped the handkerchief, Ash catching it as she caught the little mouse. Ash just flapped his mouth a bit, and finally, his eyes smiled.

"Serena!" he said, his lips finally twitching upwards. She freed one of her hands then and held it outwards. He gazed at it a moment and then reached forward, clasping it, along with the handkerchief.

"Welcome back, Ash." And his smile was everything to her in that moment; it was the only one that mattered. Finally, that was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I feel like not much happened in this chapter, yet it was still important to actually have it happen. If it didn't, I feel that things would have been way too jumpy. However, there were a lot of things going on, really. The captains and the Tapus seem to be preparing, and apparently, Ash was always going to be late. Of course, I'll dive more into him next chapter. But here, at least, you get to see part of the reason I struck on a month timeskip: it allowed the chance to evolve Hakamo-o (considering what's to come) and finalize the movesets that I wanted them all to have. Likewise, when it comes to Clanging Scales, I changed it a bit, mostly because I find it weird that Kommo-o, a physical oriented Pokémon, has a signature move that's special-oriented. I turned it into sort of both.
> 
> Hope all of that works for you. Either way, next chapter will be pretty important…well, okay, they're all going to be important from here on out.
> 
> I hope you're enjoying this final installment so far and will keep going with me to the end. Until that next chapter, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	4. A Past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Almost done with all the setup here, I promise! But nevertheless, this chapter's a pretty important one. So, that said, time for Chapter 4!

Chapter 4

A Past

Ash genuinely couldn't believe it. For a moment, he thought he was standing in a dream, if it weren't for the warmth of her hand in his. It felt like so long since he'd seen her, maybe even an eternity. That's why, even as she pulled him up, he still couldn't dare to believe it was little more than a figment of his imagination. He blinked a little, removing his hand from inside hers, and then he moved to wipe his face with the handkerchief.

In hindsight, he supposed, that should have been the first clue that she was actually real. Nevertheless, he persisted in using the handkerchief to wipe all the grime off that he had accumulated thanks to the sweat and work for the day. His bruises still stung a little, but there weren't that many left from all of his battles against Kahili; his body had grown much stronger in that regard. When he finally ceased his actions, Ash looked over and saw that she was still standing there, holding on to Pikachu. Since Pikachu had  _not_  learned how to float in midair (sure, they had learned a lot of things over the last month, but that wasn't one of those things), he had to come to the easy conclusion that she was real.

"Serena…" he finally breathed. Before he could stop himself, he'd closed the distance between them and managed to surprise her by moving right in for a kiss. She nearly dropped Pikachu, his best buddy squeezed into her chest as he gasped for air. For that moment, Ash didn't care. Serena was real, and she was here, and he'd missed her, and all he wanted to do was… "Wait a sec…why are you here?"

"Today was the rendezvous date," Serena said, gasping for breath as their lips disconnected from one another. Ash offered another blink, staring down at Pikachu (refusing to look anywhere around that area except for his friend's eyes, no matter the sudden difficulty).

"That was today?" he asked. Pikachu just shrugged. "Oh…it was today! Man, I totally forgot!"

"That's so like you," Serena laughed out, affording Ash the chance to step away and look to his Pokémon in trepidation. Now that he was back in firm reality, Ash finally realized how much he smelled…and that a large amount of his clothing, or at least his vest and shorts, were discarded near his backpack.

"Stop freaking out," Kahili called out. Ash looked to her, the woman that had been training him for a whole month, and saw that she looked just as liable to keel over as he was. Battling straight for twenty-four hours could do that to a person, and he suddenly realized his exhaustion factor. "Go wash yourself off in the spring before anything else. I probably should, too."

"You guys bathe in springs…?" Serena asked of him. Ash turned and grinned to her. As he did so, Pikachu wriggled free of her arms and returned to the rest of his Pokémon, all leading their own way towards the small cave that contained the springs in the back.

"Well, there's no other way to take a bath," Ash laughed out and he jerked his head in its direction. He just barely turned his back, when suddenly, he felt something pressing down upon it.

"Twerp!" Whipping his head at the name being used, Ash's eyes widened before he felt himself flattened underneath the combined group that was Team Rocket. "We were almost worried when you and Pikachu didn't show up!"

"I thought you mighta died!" Meowth practically bawled out. Ash struggled to get out from under them, but found he couldn't. Thankfully, Passimian and Kommo-o approached with their second wind, and both used a single arm to take the crying trio off of him.

"Thanks, you guys," Ash said, sitting up and turning to see the four members of Team Rocket with tears streaming down their faces. "Good to see you guys, as well."

"Pika!"

"Aw, Pikachu, do ya mean it?" Meowth asked, extending his paw, with tears from his eyes, to the little mouse. Ash wore a bemused expression, especially when, seconds later, Pikachu shocked the feline. "Dat's da stuff…"

"Sorry we're late, I guess," Ash spoke. He wiped his face one more time and grimaced at how filthy the handkerchief was. Choosing to not hand it back to Serena in its current state, he stood again and walked over to his bag to tuck it in, making sure to grab some fresh underclothes before walking over to the small cave. Serena followed after, and he noticed that Kahili was lagging behind, as well, taking the time to straighten her hair out as she carried her own clothing.

"I see Hakamo-o evolved," Serena said, holding her hands behind her back now, as she walked. Ash grinned at it, his trusty Dragon type drawing near enough for him to pat him on the head.

"Sure did. Just a couple days ago, too," Ash pointed out. He could finally feel the soreness all over his body, though he wasn't exactly exhausted either. They finally reached the back end of the caves and the springs that were there, two sides separated by a mountainous wall of rocks. Kahili quickly brushed past them, making for the other side that was completely obscured from view. The sound of water a minute later indicated that she was cleansing herself. "We've worked really hard the past month and learned lots of new moves and strategies. Kahili is one heck of a trainer."

"I could tell from your battle with each other. You really understand the way she works now, huh?" Serena said. Her voice sounded different, like she was looking away. Ash took that as the opportunity to strip and slip himself into the spring with his Pokémon. His lower body now obscured, Serena faced forward again and sat herself upon a rock.

Ash leaned back. He did understand Kahili…better than he understood most people other than his rivals and friends. They had spent a lot of time together: training, eating, beating each other up (she beat him  _much_  more often than the opposite). They didn't bathe together, though, and Ash was grateful for that. After a month of intensive training and battered bodies, they had all grown stronger, prepared for every challenge ahead.

At least, physically they were ready for every challenge.

Mentally, Ash felt, was a whole other battle. Sure, he had steeled himself to deal with anything that could fly at a person in the heat of battle: Kahili attacking you in your sleep to start a training battle would train anyone to keep their composure under pressure. Yet at the same time, he was no closer to finding that answer.  _Why do you want to be a Pokémon Master? What is a Pokémon Master?_  Kahili hadn't bothered to ask the questions, too focused on actively training him, but it had been at the back of his mind the whole time.

And for the first time, he was beginning to feel like it was all pointless, this kind of training. No doubt it would be useful in the upcoming battle, of course, but he still felt…lost. Feeling that, he looked up and over to Serena.

"You look like you've been well. How are the others?" Ash asked of Serena, reaching over to take a towel from his bag and begin washing himself off.

"They're good. Lillie and Bonnie went with Greninja and Lionel to meet Clemont on Poni Island," she told him. He nodded, making sure to clean every area that he could. The spring's waters felt rejuvenating, restoring some of his and his team's lost energy as he scrubbed himself. His Pokémon were likewise relaxing after a hard-won battle (he still couldn't believe that they'd actually managed to  _win_ ). "It's looking like we're all set. You and Kahili were the only pieces missing."

"Yeah, sorry again," Ash chuckled out, picking up some water and splashing it over his head. He paused and looked over to his girlfriend. She was smiling, and looked older, once more. Mature. He swallowed a bit as he took in her figure and stopped near her eyes. They seemed to have a resolve inside of them. Or maybe it was just an inkling or notion. The month had done her good.

"Ash, did you…did you find your answer?" she asked. He paused, but then resumed scrubbing the rest of his body and rinsing it off before he gave a single word in reply: no. He made to move out of the spring while she turned away and he dressed, feeling fully refreshed and in fighting mode again. Once his underwear was on, he decided to answer in full and she turned back, though not without a blush.

"Somedays I think I do, but then I realize that I don't," he answered honestly, if with confusion. The concept was confusing enough for himself, so vocalizing it was even more difficult. Serena shifted off of the rock, coming to stand and walk closer to him. He turned away, towards his Pokémon that were emerging and shaking themselves off. "It's just…"

"I understand," Serena whispered. He felt her arms snake around him from behind, her forearms against his skin as she placed her head on his shoulders. "I know you'll figure it out, though."

"Yeah," he breathed, enjoying having her there. The sound of splashing water drew him back to his senses, telling him that Kahili had emerged on the other side.

He was still searching for his answer, he knew, but maybe now he could find one. Back in Heahea, he thought he had found it: that purpose to protect everyone he cared about, or just everyone in general. Purpose was not the same as a dream, though. That was the only thing he had to figure out. How did all of this battling, Z-Moves, trials…the League…how did any of it move him closer to being a Pokémon Master? That was what he knew he had to figure out. That was the only reason he felt he'd made progress in the last month, simply because he'd come to accept that it was a fact he  _needed_  to discover, and soon. How he would, though…

Ash sighed out loud and Serena removed herself from him so he could finish getting dressed. As he threw his vest on, he could still recall Guzma's sharp words from their last battle. It was those insults that had helped drive him to become stronger, but the man had been right about one thing he wanted to deny: he didn't really know who he was. If he couldn't answer a simple question about his lifelong dream, how could he?  _Then I just have to figure it out._

"Hey, thanks for coming to get me, Serena," Ash said, turning to grin at his girlfriend. She smiled back, looking as angelic as ever, though it could have just been because he hadn't seen her in so long. That overwhelming urge to kiss her again took him over and he stepped forward, placing his hand on her back and doing so. She melted into it and his hand moved upwards, feeling the skin of her back as her shirt rode up a bit. Soon, something which felt like a towel smacked into his back.

"Break it up, lover boy. No more dawdling," Kahili's voice snapped. Ash broke the embrace and glared at her playfully. She, like always, didn't care very much and laughed.

"Well, guess we should get going, huh? Everyone, ready to move on?" Ash called to his team. They all cheered, Toucannon atop Decidueye while Lycanroc howled, and the pair of Passimian and Kommo-o bumped fists with one another. Ash grinned at them and took his pokeballs out to return them. Then he grabbed hold of Serena's hand and followed after his teacher, with Pikachu on his shoulder.

In mere seconds, they had arrived back in the field of flowers, and Ash noticed that the audience of Pokémon (some of which he had trained against when Kahili wasn't trying to kill him with her golf club) had all disappeared now. It was a shame, given that he wanted to thank them for all their help, but he passed it off for the sight of the rest of the group before him…including Gladion. He slowed.

"Gladion," he said, offering a nod in the boy's direction. The blond looked like he was working really hard to think of something to say, but ended up opting for a nod. Ash sighed inside, guessing that now wasn't the time for the two of them to work out where they'd left it. It would have to come later.

"Good, we're all here, then," Hala grumbled out, nodding his head to Ash and Kahili. The raven-haired trainer had all but forgotten that the Kahuna had been watching their battle since last night. Although, it was difficult to know if he'd actually fallen asleep at any point, given that his eyes seemed closed usually. "Quite the battle you two had. It's best to have Nurse Joy look over your Pokémon in Hau'oli City before you depart for Poni Island."

"Right…the Moon Flute," Kahili said, stretching a bit. She was fully dressed now, hat replaced and everything, slinging a bag over her shoulders. "Well, firstly, no worries about the Pokémon Center; you know these springs are restorative, otherwise I wouldn't have chosen this place. As for the Moon Flute, I've heard my rumors and have a vague idea of where it could be, though I only hold part of the knowledge. Poni is weird that way. Myself, Hapu and Mina together could figure it out, maybe with help from the chief of the Seafolk Village. Or maybe on our own. I don't know how much the other two were told. It could be the complete knowledge, or there could still be some missing fragments of what we were told. Either way, won't take long. You guys found the Sun Flute, right?"

"On its way to Poni Island right now," Gladion noted, folding his arms across himself. Ash separated his hand from Serena's, looking at Team Rocket scurrying up behind them.

"The board is set, then!" Hala proclaimed. "Now that Ash and Kahili have completed their training with one another, we can finally make good on that preemptive strike. The smaller the party for now, the better."

"Uh-huh…what's the real reason you're here, Kahuna Hala? I expressly forbade Ash from taking any Grand Trial against you, and it's not like you'll be leaving Melemele with us, so why?" Kahili questioned, arching an eyebrow as she took one of her remaining golf clubs and drilled it into the ground. Ash moved his gaze along, staring straight at the questioned man. Hala said nothing, but soon gave a knowing grin.

"The battle ahead is against people we know quite well, isn't it?" Hala said. Gladion fidgeted a little, no doubt thinking about his mother. It drew Ash's own mind back to Guzma, and his lips pursed, particularly when Hala looked right at him.  _That_  was the reason he was here, though Ash decided to not question it. "To that end…Ash, Kahili, I've no doubt the both of you have learned much of each other through battle in the last month…yet how can you expect to face an opponent you know almost nothing about?"

"Are you talking about Team Skull?" Kahili asked, almost like she was challenging the man. Hala grunted, and then he turned to walk away, as though leaving the Hill entirely.

"It won't take long," the Kahuna spoke with authority, "however, there is something that you very much need to see. I'll prepare a Tauros carriage and we'll meet at the Pokémon School." He must have intended that to be his definitive stance on the matter, because he walked off without putting another word in. Ash watched him depart, glancing first to an equally confused Pikachu before looking towards Kukui, who appeared to be frowning.

"The school…" he murmured, looking just a little uncomfortable with the whole notion as he, too, began to walk off after Hala. Ash now looked to Kahili and then Serena, both of the females looking remarkably confused, leastways, until Kahili sighed.

"Might as well see what he wants," she stated with a shrug. Ash didn't say anything, mostly because he couldn't even figure out what to say in the situation. Gladion and Team Rocket (surprisingly) were silent as well, only making any kind of noise with their feet as they stepped forward to lead the way out. Pikachu cast his gaze forward to the thieving trio, like he was watching them and their movements carefully. Eventually, just Ash, Serena and Kahili were taking up the rear though, the formidable and unknown Pokémon at Gladion's side growling at the thieves to hurry up.

"You certainly look to have grown over the last month, Serena," Kahili noted as they strode back through the darkened caves. Ash hadn't been this way since the start of his training, with Kahili literally trying to kill him if he even tried (he was pretty sure he nearly broke a leg that day), yet nothing remarkable had changed, really.

"I'm sure that we all have, really," Serena laughed out in response. Ash just looked to her, noting that she really  _had_  grown. She was maybe slightly taller (or he was fooling himself about that) with some other aspects of her figure a little more slender. More than that, though, were her eyes, sharp and clear, as though she had figured something out which eluded her before. That gave him a spark of hope.

"How's Lillie been doing?" Ash asked, his eyes traveling to Gladion's back. The boy didn't partake in the conversation, though he could tell that the blond was tensing.

"Really well, all things considered," Serena informed him with her usual beaming smile. They were already reaching the exit from the cave now, stepping out onto the sun-bleached sands. Kukui was far ahead of them, striding across the beach towards Hau'oli City. His Gallade was joining him from the house across the way and Ash breathed in.

"It's nice to be out in the fresher air again, huh, buddy?"

"Pika pikachuuu…" Pikachu cooed, taking in just as much of the fresh air. Kahili laughed, slapping him on the back once more. It was like a reminder for them to keep walking forward. Shrugging to himself, Ash took Serena's hand once again and their group moved to catch up with Gladion and Team Rocket.

They finally managed to do so just outside the forest to Hau'oli City, where Kukui was already heading inside, that same expression still upon his face in a worrisome way. Ash tried not to let it bother him, simply enjoying the time with his girlfriend and mentor. The coolness and pure nature of the forest was nice, but Ash was happy to see civilization on the horizon. He certainly enjoyed nature, but being stuck in it for a whole month with little to no human contact outside of Kahili or Hala was enough to drive anyone almost insane. That was what made his face light up with joy at the sight of the Pokémon School, that first sign of civilization again, despite the fact that Gladion and Team Rocket were stopping right outside it. Kukui had already disappeared inside.

"So, does the old geezer want us to wait out here or…?" Jessie said with her usual snappish tone. James and Meowth both made to facepalm themselves while Gladion outright ignored them. Ash finally stopped near them and looked around, noticing that he couldn't see any other familiar faces, and since Serena was doing the same, he had to imagine she'd seen Ilima earlier.

"Knowing Hala, him telling us to meet him here is no coincidence," Kahili said, her features sharp. Ash knew that expression quite well: the mix between skepticism, curiosity and annoyance. He also took it as the sign to heed her words, despite Team Rocket's obvious reluctance.

"If I wanted to go back to school, I'd become a teenager just to ditch it," Jessie snapped angrily, clearly not liking the idea of their simply  _being_  here.

"Jess, if you were in da school, I'm pretty sure ya'd flunk out," Meowth said with a snicker. Jessie kicked out at him while James yawned, showing his own boredom at the thought of entering into a school building. Of course, Ash figured that the blue-haired man had never actually gone to school in his life, likely having private tutors instead.

"You can always go and wait on the boat, you know? We don't need you along," Gladion told them. The thieving trio stopped, looking at the boy. Ash shook his head with a laugh, reaching up to pet Pikachu as they watched Kahili make her way towards the school doors. Deliberating for all of a second, Ash chose to follow swiftly, leaving their zany trio behind.

"Hey, if that's the case, then we'll go and wait," James said cheerfully,

"That's a topic we don't need to debate."

"Loungin' in da sun is our total fate!"

"Wobb wobba wobb!"

"Just don't make off with the boat," Serena said, throwing her voice back to the scrupulous trio. Ash looked back and saw that Jessie just smirked in Serena's direction, but didn't make a scathing remark, to his immense surprise.

"Please, we have no means of taking Team Skull on without you, even if we'll take all the credit for beating them."

"Not like we stand a chance without the twerps, anyway," James appeared to mumble, followed by a rather loud slap. Ash decided to not let it disturb him as he faced towards the school again, especially at the sound of Team Rocket scurrying off through the city while they finally made their way inside.

Striding forward, Ash could see that none of the children were playing outside at this moment, and from movement inside the school, mostly on the upper floors, they had all returned to their classes. Ash quickly focused on the approaching doors, which Kahili flung open with little ceremony, fully allowing them inside. It was just as quiet there as it was out front, except for the presence of Kukui and Principal Asuka in the entrance hall. They seemed to be having some manner of conversation, but Ash couldn't figure out what it was about. Instead, he took in all of his surroundings.

It was a quaint building, lined with little artifacts and fossils. Some things were in display cases within the wooden-floored hallway, and Ash walked towards one of them, he and Pikachu leaning forward. It was certainly a place for learning, not that Ash was all too aware of what that was like. There was a sudden tug on the back of his vest and Ash turned to Serena, her hand raised and her finger pointing towards something hanging on the wall. He quickly followed the finger, noticing that Gladion was staring at the exact same object: a picture, somewhat hidden behind a large skeleton that obscured it.

Ash stepped closer now, peering at the picture on the wall as he moved the skeleton aside. There were three kids there, a little younger than himself. In the center looked like a teenaged Kukui, a Kirlia dancing in front of him. He was pulling a girl with purple hair and a Fomantis to him, just as she looked at him with annoyance. On the other side was another boy with shockingly white hair, a small bug Pokémon in his arms as he bumped fists with Kukui. Ash's eyes widened.

"Is that…?"

"The Triumphant Trio they liked to call themselves," Asuka spoke, walking away from her conversation with Kukui. The professor hung back, nervously scratching his head. Kahili just watched them all from a slight distance, leaning against the wall. "They could have been the three best students ever produced by the school. Emphasis on 'could have'."

"It's Professor Kukui, Miss Akela and…Guzma, right?" Serena asked. Ash reached forward and gingerly took the portrait down from the wall. It definitely looked like Guzma, despite the boy lacking most of his later Skull regalia. Asuka reached over, taking the picture from his hands fondly, yet wistfully.

"It was so long ago…"

"Professor, you  _knew_  Guzma?" Ash asked of the man. The professor chuckled under his breath, shaking his head before he made to walk over. Once he reached them, he looked down at the picture.

"I knew Guzma  _before_  all this," Kukui finally answered. He shook his head again, and for the first time outside of a dangerous situation, Ash saw him drop the part of the genial professor. "I wouldn't call the man 'Guzma' now. He's nothing like the way he was."

"Guzma was always a reckless one, Kukui. That hasn't changed," Asuka told him, like it was a reminder of sorts. Ash wasn't sure what to make of that. The boy in the picture lacked the scowl or taunting smirk that Guzma usually wore these days. In fact, he seemed…happy.

"Oh, you don't have to remind me of that…He'd always pull me in on some harebrained scheme and I'd go along with it for whatever reason, and then Akela would catch us and chew us both out before joining in, herself. The scoldings you gave us, principal…" Kukui laughed out. The principal joined him in that laughter. "Believe it or not, we were the best of friends for those few years together, before we took our pilgrimages."

"Wouldn't know it now," Gladion spat. He, himself, was wearing a scowl at the thought of it. "The Guzma I knew didn't seem the type to be friends."

"I don't know about that," Ash breathed out. Gladion looked at him with an eyebrow raised, but Ash didn't elaborate further. Guzma may not have had friends, but he had certainly chosen his family. The only difference was that he chose to potentially abandon both for himself…or so Ash felt.

"Guzma…he was always an odd one," Kukui said, almost like he was lamenting a part of the past. "I tried to distance myself once he went off the rails, and maybe that just made things worse. I considered myself a friend, but I couldn't respect what he turned into: a man hungering for power and respect, when all he would do was burn the world if it suited him."

"Then the real question is what turned him into that," Kahili spoke out, harsh lines across her face. Ash let that sink into him. What  _had_  caused Guzma to become the man he was? Why  _did_  he decide to help Lusamine in her insanity? Clearly no one here had the answers, because they were all shaking their heads.

"I've no idea, and I honestly don't care," the professor spoke, walking away without another glance at the picture. "I can't be friends with someone who would willingly hurt people and Pokémon for anything."

With those words, he strode out of the school, slamming the doors behind him. It was the most negative emotion that Ash had ever seen from him. He could only suppose that Guzma had a singular way of getting underneath people's skin. Ash glanced outside of the window nearby to see Kukui shove his hands in his pockets and walk away towards the forest, clearly not wanting to think of the issue any longer. Asuka suddenly reached up and placed the picture back on the wall, no longer obscured by the skeleton.

"He was never the brightest student, Guzma, but what he lacked in intelligence, he made up for in determination, and I always adored that. It made him a good student, I felt…until he broke," the principal sighed out, touching her hand to the picture once more. "Maybe it was seeing the rest of them succeed where he failed: Kukui the Island Champion, Akela the Ali'i ka Leilani…"

Ash had to wonder that as well, especially hearing the principal's description of the man. It felt like hearing about himself in some fashion, and he looked down to his Z-Ring. What had happened to the man?

_Yer nothin'!_  Guzma's proclamation seemed to say a lot about his character in some way, but Ash was given no more time to contemplate it by Asuka jerking her head, indicating that their ride had finally pulled up. Ash looked out the window to see Hala driving a Tauros-drawn carriage with plenty of room. Ash exhaled, looking to Pikachu; they now had a good idea of just where Hala was taking them, or at least what for.

"Come on. Thanks, principal," Ash said, nodding to the woman. She returned it before turning back to the wall once they'd moved away. Before Ash left the school, he turned, seeing the woman putting one last hand on the photo and smiling sadly. It certainly gave him something to think about, and he turned out.

Hala was silent as they approached, looking at a point down the road where Kukui had likely disappeared to while Kahili settled herself in the back seat of the four-seater carriage. Ash was barely even thinking about it as he pulled himself on to the back of the carriage next to Serena in the front. Hala continued staring a moment before whipping the reins and beginning to speed out of Hau'oli City.

Ash wasn't really thinking or paying attention to whatever was going on around him. And judging from the relatively general silence that was surrounding them, none of the others were doing much else other than thinking as well. Buildings faded to trees, and concrete to grass, but Ash found himself picturing that photograph in his mind's eye. It was hard to imagine Guzma as a child, considering what he had become, and even less that he was friends with people who were generally so kind. But something had happened, and he wanted to know what before it all fell apart on him.

Because staring into the eyes of that boy in the photo, he thought he saw a glimmer of himself, as well.

"Ash, are you all right?" Serena questioned quietly, though it may as well have been fireworks going off considering the silence of everyone else around them. He turned to smile at her, noticing that Pikachu had decided to sit upon her lap.

"Totally," he said before leaning back against the seat and staring up into the sky. Clouds were beginning to move in, though it didn't appear that it was threatening to rain, which was at least one positive; although it did make the whole world seem just a little bit darker. "Just hard to imagine Guzma as a kid…"

"Because he's a demon," Gladion snapped from the front seat. Ash looked to the boy, staring at his back as the blond's shoulders tensed from where they were. A frown settled on to the raven-haired trainer's lips with a light sigh. "The Guzma that I knew…he was just as bad as my mother…only he didn't hide who he was."

"Yes, Guzma always wore himself on his sleeve," Hala grumbled out from the driver's seat. It was the first words he'd spoken since Ten Carat Hill. Ash waited to see if, perhaps, he would end up saying more, but nothing more came. In the same vein, Gladion fell silent. Having nothing else to talk about, Ash turned towards Serena, feeling his heart lighten.

The last month had been one wrought with intensity and confusion from beginning to end, when he really stopped to think about it. If he wasn't teaching his Pokémon new strategies and moves, he was battling Kahili in hand to hand combat, or doing something with the local wildlife. If they finally had a moment to rest with some food, Ash would find his mind drifting to so many topics. Usually, they tended to fall in the order of more training, Serena, his dream, his Pokémon, Serena, even more training, needing sleep, the others and his dream yet again to cap them all off.

The thinking really hurt his brain, though, and it didn't have him figuring out what his dream, or what he hoped to get out of it, was. That sometimes demotivated him, but a sharp rap from one of Kahili's golf clubs usually brought him out of it. Now, he felt even better. Despite the lack of answers, he was confident in his strength, at the very least, and there was no need to worry about Serena. His girlfriend looked even stronger than ever, in more ways than one.

The carriage suddenly began to slow down, forcing Ash to take his gaze away from her. Before he did so, he finally noticed that her hair was a little longer, draping somewhat towards her shoulders. He liked it, if he was honest, mostly because he felt like it was this combo between her original hair and her usual length. Facing forward to the route they had seemed to rush across, Ash thought about his own hair. He had done a little bit of work on it, but it felt more unruly than before, and he was okay with that.

The carriage came to a near complete stop, sending some of them jerking forward from the loss of such speed, but otherwise remaining okay. Ash stood in the carriage and realized that they seemed to be parked in the middle of nowhere. If he squinted for the distance, he felt he could see the berry farms that he and the others had visited at the start of their trip to Alola; those Tauros had once more proven themselves as ridiculously fast. Chuckling to himself, Ash realized that those berry farms were from a time before they had truly met Lillie, and she had joined them. Part of him wanted to come back with her and the others to see how Kumu and Hua were doing now.

_But we can't…because it isn't the same, is it?_  he realized. Adopting a solemn expression, Ash tore his eyes away from that sight and dream, raking along the lone berry trees where he'd first met Toucannon. She seemed to notice it, too, from the jiggling of her pokeball. There was proof enough of how much things had changed. Toucannon was not a Pikipek anymore, after all.

"Looks like we had to grow up again," Ash breathed out. Only Serena had heard him, and he saw the almost imperceptible nodding of her head. With her agreement, Ash stopped thinking of their past part of the journey, choosing to focus on the present and future. He looked around their immediate surroundings now, and realized they had stopped outside of a broken-down house. Boards were covering up the windows and shingles were broken off of the roof. In some places, wood was splintered, and the door leading inward…looked almost new.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked, tilting his head as he leapt out of Serena's lap and looked up at the house. He wasn't alone in doing so; the strange Pokémon that had come with Gladion joined him, growling a little at the house.

"Cool it, Silvally. We're not here to battle," Gladion said, exiting from the carriage, himself, and shoving his hands into his pockets. His face was still scowling. Ash looked to the one Gladion called Silvally and finally recognized it for what it was, especially from the way it was glaring Pikachu down. Pikachu seemed alarmed at first, but soon also recognized it as some kind of evolved form of Null.

"Chupi?"

"Hrrrrr…" Silvally growled out, reaching a claw forward to touch to Pikachu's paw. It was bizarre to do it here, but Ash felt a little proud that he had been able to figure it out. The whole carriage seemed to shake before Ash and Serena could disembark, indicating that Hala had left the driver's seat. Ash took that as his own cue to leave and he exited quickly.

Without thinking, his footsteps began to take him in the direction of the house, stepping on to the porch. He thought, for a moment, that the whole thing would give in under his weight from the molded wood, but it held him surprisingly well, all things considered. He moved closer to the door, and Pikachu ran away from Silvally to join him as they reached that entranceway to the house.

It was definitely new, in sharp contrast to the rest of the house, as if it had been changed some time in the last few months. The paint was fresh, gleaming in comparison with the rest of the house, even without the sun shining on it. The hinges looked new. Regardless of the state of the rest of the house, someone had taken to making this one part look respectable; perhaps as some reminder of leaving or coming back, Ash tried to figure. At the thought, Ash looked back to Hala, and the Kahuna's arms folded as he nodded, signaling him to head inside. Ash turned and pushed on the front of the door, proving the lock was busted as it swung inwards, permitting them entrance to the house.

He stepped inside, and that was when the front door meant nothing. While that particular part of the house was taken care of, as though trying to pretend the place was inviting but not committing all the way, the rest of it was in complete disarray. Some light came into the house, streaming through those boarded windows, but the rest of it was completely abandoned and dusty. Behind him, Serena was stepping in, sneezing cutely from the dust in the air. To allow her more space, Ash walked forward, filtering through the dusty air and atmosphere. Kahili seemed to stay outside, leaning against the rotted porch. Gladion joined in, though.

"This place is abandoned…who lived here?" he asked, rubbing at his nose to prevent his own sneeze. Ash had an inkling, but didn't give a response to the blond. He walked over to what looked like a kitchen. There was no electricity in the entire building, so the refrigerator that sat there was completely inoperable, but there was no smell coming from it, either, indicating that there was nothing inside it.

There was still a table and some chairs, though. Three chairs, though two of them were broken. Only one, a far smaller chair, was still intact. As Ash placed his hand on to the table, leaving a dusty imprint behind, Serena and Gladion walked to separate areas of the house, opening doors and sending more dust around the area. Ash sighed to himself and turned away from the kitchen, moving towards one of the boarded-up windows.

"This place feels really lonely, Pikachu," he said, almost feeling sad inside. Pikachu nodded with a whimper of agreement. Ash's foot suddenly knocked against something, making a clattering sound and Ash looked down. At his feet were a number of bent golf clubs, like they'd been used to hit something…or more scarily, some _one_. Swallowing with the frightening thought, Ash swept his eyes along the floor until he noticed something: a broken Trial Amulet, its wedges and orbs scattered all around it. He stepped forward and bent down, pressing his hand down on to it. The item was extremely old, by at least a decade, it seemed, if not more.

"There's nothing here," Serena spoke, coming back into the room with a concerned look. Ash frowned and straightened himself, just in time for Gladion to join them, as well.

"All I saw back there were some ripped up floorboards. I get the feeling someone was very angry," the boy said, jerking his finger back to where he'd explored. Ash wasn't sure how to share his own information, especially if his guess was accurate enough. Shuddering footsteps filled the room and all three of the teenagers looked as the light from the doorway was obscured. Sure enough, Hala was standing in the portal to the house before walking forward, his breaths like heaving snorts.

The old Kahuna stopped nearest to Ash, looking down at the amulet on the ground. For all of a second, he adopted a softer expression on his face, bending down to pick it up. He seemed like a concerned grandfather for that moment, almost something Ash would have expected him to look at Hau with. Then he saw something he never expected: tears.

"This house," he said, his voice warbling with the tears that rested on his eyes. Ash was already looking at him while both Serena and Gladion turned their heads and did the same. "Once, long ago, there was a family that lived here. It was a small, simple life, but peaceful…

"Then there came a small sickness, and the mother passed away, unable to get the care that was needed. It was a difficult life for the father and the boy that remained, but they made a go of it. The boy resolved to gain strength, so that he would never have to endure that weakness ever again: the weakness of being helpless. He got into all sorts of trouble, and his father would scold him. No one knew what happened behind the closed doors of this house, but many days, the boy would emerge with bruises. Were they from his adventures? Were they from something else? No one ever knew, and it hardly mattered.

"That boy soon managed to get accepted to the Pokémon School on his battling merit alone," Hala continued to explain. With every word that he was speaking, Serena's face seemed to be drawing into one of complete revulsion. The implications of what the Kahuna was speaking about were certainly enough for that. "And there, he flourished, though inside him he wanted more. To this day, I'm unsure exactly what he was searching for or why; unsure of what he wanted, though it led to this obsession with power.

"Was he trying to avoid his weakness?"

"The boy…?" Ash wanted to ask, wanted to confirm his theory, but Hala was in no state to answer. He was too lost in his old thoughts before his body began to shake. His fists clenched against the amulet held in his hand, appearing to start crushing it into powder.

"He left, eventually, searching for more and more strength. He didn't care about anyone or anything. Though during his tenure in school, I tried to instill within him a love and compassion. I don't believe I ever broke through, because he wanted the strength that only mattered to him. Everyone else was an obstacle in his way that he needed to destroy. They were nothing. Only, he finally hit a roadblock…"

"Then what happened to the boy?" Gladion asked. Ash wasn't sure if he hadn't quite picked up yet, or if he was just going along with Hala's version of the narrative in order to let the story flow naturally. Hala stopped, his hand relaxing and allowing the amulet to tumble to the ground, clattering into little pieces, like a symbol of what it meant.

"He challenged me. And he lost." The parallel didn't escape Ash.  _He_  had yet to defeat Hala. And if the boy hadn't, then it was certain that he never completed his trials, either, just like all the other "losers" of Alola. Ash felt his own fist tightening. "From there, he broke, I believe. Though, whether I was the cause of it, I still could not say, if I'm honest. He drove his father from this home, from what I heard, the man disappearing entirely. Maybe he left for another region, or perhaps he felt some sense of shame over his son and decided to atone in anonymity and utter silence. I wouldn't know."

"That's…such a sad story," Serena confessed. Hala breathed tightly, reaching his hand up to brush away the tears and turning to face their entire group. Outside, Ash noticed Kahili's head facing inward, listening to the conversation. Their eyes met for a moment; it wasn't lost on her either, and Ash felt his heart clenching with his fists.

"To this day, I consider that boy my greatest failure," Hala spoke, his voice rumbling, an almost imperceptible fury lacing it. "That's the reason I made sure to raise Hau to be kind and gentle…loving…caring…the battles not mattering, because I knew that boy. I knew him, and I failed him. I…I blame  _myself_  for the state Alola is in."

"Don't bother," Gladion said. It was harsh, but something that Ash could agree with. "This was no one's fault but my mother's."

"But Michael's," Serena insisted. "I have no idea whether Michael was the one to twist this 'boy', but he's the one who poisoned so many people's lives, including Lusamine's. And even if he hadn't, they made their choices, just as we've made our own. We made our choice to step towards the light, instead of away from it!"

"She's right," Ash said, though it wasn't filled with his usual enthusiasm, something which Pikachu appeared to pick up on in all of an instant. His mind was whirling, not only with the strange similarities, down to a missing parent and everything, but also because he was thinking about Nanu's words a month ago. Standing against a hatred of the system…was it possible that Hala's failure was simply a failure of the trial system itself? Had it been that which led to the situation they were all in?

"Thank you, but kindness does not change facts," Hala rumbled out. "I'm not telling you this to earn your pity. I'm telling you this because I know this boy, swallowed in a vacuum of his own strength and hatred. If you don't understand this about that boy, then you'll never be able to defeat him, no matter how much you try. He believed that the more he fought, the more he made his opponents less than him, the better it would make him. That was his goal in battle.

"So, I need to ask now, before you head for what may be your ultimate confrontation with the boy, with Guzma, what do you hope to gain out of battling? All of you?" He may have asked that to all of them, but Ash knew the question was truly directed right at himself.

"I'm going to make people smile."

"I'm going to rebuild things, and learn to work with others." Their answers made Ash smile, yet when Hala looked to receive his own answer, all he could do was look to Pikachu. He waited a moment.

"I don't know."

Silence followed that statement, except for Kahili's part bark, part chuckle that followed the statement. Hala stared at him, propping open a single eye as he watched him. Ash just stared right back at him, wondering how he'd answer. Pikachu touched a paw to his face kindly, like a sense of encouragement. Ash just grinned a little.

"I don't know what being a Pokémon Master is, or what it means, or why I want to be it," he said. His fists clenched a little tighter and he pulled them up to his chest, holding his ground against the Kahuna that had unsettled him just a little. "I know it's something that I've been after since I was a little kid, and it  _is_  my ultimate dream. That won't change.

"But after all this time, I can accept that I have no idea what it even is. Maybe I can't define it, but that's okay, somehow." Here, Ash stopped, trying to consider the next words to say to Hala. There were so many options; so many feelings roiling around inside of him that it could have crushed him, but he wouldn't let it. "To me, I just need to figure out who I am with or without that dream. I know my reason for battling exists, and I need to find it. My purpose is to protect everyone, which leads to battling, and me and all my Pokémon need to find out what those battles mean to me…I think."

"So, your answer is that you don't have an answer?" Gladion asked. It wasn't mocking him, though. It was more humorous than Ash would have expected, and he allowed himself a chance to grin. No matter his own confusion and questions and doubts inside of him, he was resolved to find the answers, regardless.

"Maybe, but I  _will_  find it," he proclaimed. His eyes moved over to Serena, taking in her beautiful features and smiling face as she placed her hands behind her. That gave him hope, love…so many things that drove him forward. So, too, did his best friend on his shoulder, grinning up at the old Kahuna. Eventually, he faced Hala directly. "When I do, Hala, I'm going to battle you again. That time, we'll win and complete our Island Pilgrimage together."

Hala said nothing, closing his eyes slightly as he watched Ash. Then his body seemed to shake, but it wasn't with the same kind of trembling that came when he was furious at all. No, he was shaking in an almost jovial manner. "Ha hah hahahahaha! What an answer!"

"It's not really an answer," Gladion repeated, but Hala didn't appear to care. Ash didn't care much at all, either. He found himself smiling, especially when Serena stepped over to him. Almost without thinking, Ash punched his fist out, holding it for the Kahuna.

"I  _won't_  become like Guzma. Maybe he found his answer, or maybe he was like me and didn't, but I know I can't become like him. We all have our chances to, but that's why we surround ourselves with people who stop us, like Serena," Ash said. Hala smirked at the comment, liking his answer all the more, enough for him to reach forward and place his fist directly against Ash's with a grin that was growing larger by the second.

"I believe that, and I'll look forward to our battle when you have that answer. Hopefully sooner than later, especially with the League coming up," the man responded. Ash just stared into his eyes firmly.

"I'm not gonna rush it," he responded with a shrug. That answer appeared to be a good one to Hala. The sound of footsteps on wood now drew Ash's attention away from the Kahuna and to Kahili entering in the house, brushing her hair back.

"Well, rushing or no, I think we're practically out of time, don't you?" the blue-haired woman said with a little wink in their direction. "The Moon Flute is still waiting, and all of our friends will be starting their strike sooner than later. Not to mention…"

"What?" Ash asked, before he could let her trail off for long periods of time. For a woman so extraordinarily blunt, she also liked to tease things out from time to time, he had noticed over the month, though only to people she was comfortable with.

"Well, since Hapu and Mina are needed to help out and everything…I think you might as well take on your final trial," she stated simply. Ash wanted to stop his mouth from falling open at such a proclamation. They were at such a crucial juncture, and she was suggesting something like that? ! "Ash, you're a strong trainer, and one of the toughest opponents I've fought, but you're about to face the same guy that kicked your ass a month ago and made you question  _everything_. Trust me when I say you need this final trial. If everything goes well with it, I'd argue that we'll succeed at the preemptive strike.

"In the meantime, have faith in your friends to pull it off."

That kind of statement was really all that Ash needed to know that Kahili was right. In fact, it was more of the way that she had put it. It wasn't about completing the trials for his pilgrimage, or even for himself. It was about being there for his friends. He'd be completing this trial to aid them in their own tasks…and it would help him to need to rely on them as well. Plus, it helped that they needed to head for the location of said trial in the first place.

"All right, we'll do it. Right, Pikachu?" Pikachu nodded, pumping his tiny fist a little. Ash faced back to his mentor. "We'll clear it the best way we know how, get information on the Moon Flute, and do whatever we need to win this battle!"

"Pika!"

"Hrrrr!" Silvally growled out, all while Gladion and Serena chuckled a bit. They were all set in their task, though Ash got a strange feeling from the toothy grin that Kahili was sporting; it usually didn't mean anything good.

"Trust me, this trial will be interesting, and I think you'll get it when you do it, and why I want you to do it now," she told him with a wink. That was about all he got out of her when she whipped around. Ash watched her go, his companions following afterwards. Somehow, he got the feeling that Kahili's idea of interesting would have to do with his questions, his pilgrimage  _and_  their upcoming fight all at once. She was that way even during training, making every task some sort of multi-faceted adventure in the expansive Hill. That was enough for him to trust even further. Shaking his head, Ash followed after to load back on to the cart.

Hala quickly emerged, too, closing the door behind them and driving them all the way back to Hau'oli City. It was late afternoon by the time they'd finally pulled back in at near breakneck speed, almost running people over until they stopped outside the marina. Kahili and Serena wasted no time in running forward, while Gladion was a little slower, same as Ash. Before they abandoned Hala on the street, though, Ash turned back.

"Hala, about that boy…do you think there's any hope for him, even now?"

Hala's answer didn't seem to come for a long while, but when it did, Ash could tell he'd put all of his thoughts into answering that very question.

"There might be, Ash," he said sternly, "but if there is…I don't think he can obtain it if he doesn't think for himself first."

Those puzzling words rattling in his brain, Ash nodded and set off for the boat. The time of their battle, of his final trial on Poni Island, had arrived at long last. It was time to find his answers and face Guzma one last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: This chapter was ridiculously filled with information despite there not being a battle or action or even leaving Melemele again. For one, we're back with Ash after all this time and he's finally stopped running from the truth he'd been avoiding. He doesn't know what he wants, or what it is and all that jazz. This is important because now he can actually work for an answer. More importantly, is all that information about Guzma. Now, there's still some stuff left out in the open, of course, but here they finally get a glimpse into the man that's been causing nothing but pain. And, of course, that final line from Hala is key.
> 
> However, next chapter, the action finally shifts to Poni Island, the only one I have yet to truly depict. Things will start moving now, and one of my favorite segments is coming up with that impending battle as well. Hopefully you enjoyed all this buildup and will enjoy that as well.
> 
> This journey is now trucking along for its impending finale, so I hope that you'll enjoy it and join with me until the very end. Until that next day comes, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	5. A Pool

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We finally touch down on Poni this chapter. I hope you all enjoy it very much. Time for Chapter 5!

Chapter 5

A Pool

"Can't believe we've been on the island pretty much the whole entire time and we never even saw this!" Hau exclaimed brightly. He practically leapt from the ship, on to the coast, with the utmost of enthusiasm. Pipi followed after him, floating around on her tail for fun. Clemont sighed, watching the two of them in their moment of amusement. They were soon joined by Rotom.

"Oh, my! Rotom is very intrigued by this location!" the Pokédex said. Despite the dearth of Pokémon around, it began snapping all sorts of pictures before zipping over to the edge of a pool. "Oh, this Feebas is most interesting!"

"Don't split up, guys. We need to be ready for the others when they get here," Clemont sighed liberally. He shook his head, Charjabug and Bunnelby traveling with him on his shoulders. Naturally, the two hyperactive companions of his pretty much ignored him and moved to examine the coast before them. It was clearly unfamiliar, even to Hau, who had managed to complete his trials thanks to Hapu and the captain on Poni Island visiting a few weeks back at the Battle Tree (or so Clemont had heard; he was away on a research trip with Gary). "What do I do with them? Sometimes Hau is like an older, male version of Bonnie…"

"Bunbun," Bunnelby assured him, patting his cheek kindly. Charjabug would have responded, too, but he seemed just as interested in Clemont's bag again. That afforded the inventor a small chuckle as he stepped down from the boat and on to the Poni Breaker Coast.

Watching Hau and Rotom excitedly examine the area, Clemont chose to do so as well, taking in all of its sights. It was unlike any area of Poni he had seen previously, and seemed closer in nature and structure to the Tapu Village on Ula'ula, if he was honest. Most of Poni Island seemed to be completely wild and untamed in its nature, teeming with Pokémon and plant life, undisturbed by the ravages of civilization. While that could be said for all of Alola, Clemont felt it fit in particular here, considering the only effect of modernization seemed to be the Battle Tree on the other side of the island, and possibly the Seafolk Village that Serena had mentioned to them. However, here on the Poni Breaker Coast, nature had more than taken its course.

A loud sound suddenly erupted and Clemont flinched, turning to see a great geyser of water erupting from some distance away. It had been completely unexpected, and Clemont finally had a good look at just what had happened to the coast over time. Nature had taken the coast in its own way. Not with vines and grass and trees, but with erosion. Geysers spouted forth, wearing away at the rock and sands, reducing it to barren land where few people or Water type Pokémon roamed. It was beautiful, in a haunting way. Clemont reached up to remove his hat, running his hands through his hair as he walked towards Hau, who had stopped running around crazily. The inventor was grateful for that.

"You think that's the place?" the energetic boy asked, his hands behind his head as he looked forward, towards a specific location. Clemont drew even with him and looked forward to what he was staring at. Like a ripple of water passing down his neck, dripping with a cold ferocity, Clemont saw the colored gateway that he had only seen twice before: the entrance to one of the Tapu's shrines. The inventor breathed in.

"The Ruins of Hope…" he said when he was ready to exhale. Hau dropped the smile, looking almost serious for a moment, contemplative in a sense. "Lillie said to meet here."

"I wonder why," Hau muttered. Pipi floated away from him, clearly bored by just staring at the entrance without doing anything. The two boys continued to stare, and, after a moment, Hau made to move forward to it, only for Clemont to grab him. He shook his head, making Hau shrug and look away without approaching.

However, Clemont remained staring at the entrance to the ruins. It was the first time he was close to one of these ruins again since the night he'd ran in search of one in the desert. Ash. Serena. Gladion. Lillie. Each of them had obtained Z-Rings from one of the guardian deities. Part of Clemont was grateful that they had all chosen those close to one another, but the smaller, yet still prominent, part of his mind wondered why he couldn't be chosen. Hapu had stated that the Tapus were fickle; this seemed to be generally agreed upon in Alola, but Clemont had to wonder what their reason was for choosing who they did.

If so, what did he lack?

It was a question he had wanted to answer so badly. That was why he had been all for the idea when Ash suggested they separate for the month. Their group had been together too long, making up for each other's deficiencies, that he needed to learn where he stood on his own. While he wasn't sure what he lacked when being chosen by one of the guardian deities, or why he didn't deserve a Z-Ring in that vein, he had at least discovered something he was useful for…and that maybe, while he was skilled at battling, it wasn't his own particular purpose. It was all something he had accepted, but something he still questioned and very much wanted an answer to.

"Rairairai!" Pipi's voice suddenly called from the edge of the coast, and Clemont turned. It sounded like she had seen something, prompting all three to run over to her at that edge (or float, as the case was for Rotom). Pressing his glasses further inward, Clemont could definitely see something approaching the coast at a high speed.

"Ah! Land ahoy!" Hau yelled, the grin back on his face again as he began to wave manically. Clemont looked at him with amusement, but also raised his hand as the boat that was approaching them began to slow, making its rather obvious occupants more noticeable.

"Isn't it kind of pointless to say that when you're already  _on_  land, Hau?" the familiar voice of Lillie called, waving energetically. Clemont looked her over, now that they were actually in person instead of over the phone. She looked very well, and from the way Hau's grin widened a little more, probably cute. The boat rolled up to the shore, and much to the inventor's surprise, Lillie was the first to leap off of it. Whether it was her intention or not, he couldn't be sure, but Hau caught her and the two of them fell to the ground laughing.

Clemont flushed slightly from the embarrassment, his mind slipping to Korrina. While he didn't think about her too often, what with all the things he'd been doing, he did wonder where she was and if she was okay. Not that he worried about the latter. He was more worried for himself in that regard…well, himself and the person that was now jumping into  _his_  arms.

"Clemont!" The bespectacled boy turned at the very last second, only to be bowled into by Bonnie. He waved his arms wildly as her own enclosed themselves around his neck. Dedenne, too, joined in. Though, the little dormouse did give a rather ill-timed Nuzzle that sent them all collapsing to the ground from the electricity. The little mouse had definitely grown stronger, and Clemont had to wonder if his sleeping habits had changed at all, either. Bonnie finally pressed on Clemont's chest and sat up with a smug expression. "We're here!"

"I can see that, Bonnie," Clemont laughed a little, adjusting his askew glasses. His little sister suddenly leaned in and offered him a little kiss on the cheek. He just accepted it, though it was remarkably unlike her. "You're looking almost like a proper Pokémon trainer now."

"You think? Dedenne and me trained with Greninja and Squishy every day!" Bonnie said, pumping her fists. Clemont looked to the bag around her shoulders, seeing Squishy popping out with a slightly amused expression. Bluey was there, too, if less amused than his friend.

"Yes, Bonnie was quite the battler on some of our adventures," Lionel suddenly spoke, reaching down to grab hold of Bonnie under her arms and pulling her off of Clemont. The Gym Leader was grateful for that, mostly because it returned blood circulation to the lower half of his body and allowed him to stand. As he did so, he gave a look to the leader of ARC, completely unchanged from their parting a month ago.

"I'd love to hear about them. It sounds like you all went on some wild ones," Clemont said, adopting a smile on to his face. Him being stuck in one or two places for that month meant a dearth as far as adventures went, but the data and conclusions they had uncovered were more exciting to him in the first place.

"It sure was!" Bonnie cheered, digging into her bag and pulling out the object that had sent them all off in their different directions that month ago, in the first place. Clemont almost wanted to marvel at the glittering Sun Flute, but Bonnie had set off again with her words, jabbering excitedly. "We went to lots and lots of places, right, Dedenne?"

"Dede!" Dedenne said cheerily, throwing his stubby little arms up as he climbed to the top of Bonnie's head.

"Like, there was one time we went to this underwater temple off the coast of Ula'ula Island," Bonnie was telling him with sparkling eyes. For a second, Clemont looked to Lionel and could tell that the man actually seemed rather entertained from her words, like it was a story and memory he enjoyed hearing from Bonnie every time. "We bought scuba gear and went underwater and there were all these booby traps near the center of the temple."

"Nin…ja…" Greninja said, walking forward with a shudder. Clemont had hardly even noticed he was there, but it was clear to the inventor, that for Ash's steadfast partner, the memory was a little less than pleasant.

"Yeah, Greninja found them all, and in the center was  _this_!" she said exuberantly, holding the Sun Flute forward with her unending grin.

"Its power was concealed by the layers of the temple, and if it wasn't for Greninja, I'm not so certain we would have ever found it," Lionel indicated, patting the amphibian on the back. "That, or we'd be dead from one of the booby traps going off inadvertently."

"Likely because Bonnie triggered them," Rotom suddenly mocked. Clemont stopped himself from sighing or facepalming. Not even a few minutes into their actual, physical reunion and it already seemed like the two were going to be at each other's throats again.

Sure enough, Bonnie responded with a very vehement, "I did not!"

"Rotom wants pictures or there's no proof," Rotom snarked at her. His sister stepped towards the sentient Pokédex, hands on her hips, ready for a quarrel.

"Yeah? Well, what have you been up to, Rotom?" she snapped at it. "Because I'm the one with the flute and you seem to be as dumb and annoying as ever."

"Rotom has upgraded features, of course! Rotom can also hack into cameras now, thanks to Nanu's device," Rotom said proudly, though Clemont wasn't sure that was something it should have necessarily been proud of. "For example, Rotom can play videos of different victories like this!"

"Ah, Rotom!" Clemont said in an attempt to stop it, but to no avail. Suddenly, on its screen, was a shot of one of his battles at the Battle Tree, featuring Chespin against a Walrein. Bonnie actually watched on in fascination. She wasn't the only one. Just about everyone clustered themselves around Rotom to watch Chespin leaping high into the air with a Vine Whip before sending a Pin Missile down upon the Walrein. It soon howled up a Blizzard, until…

"Chespin used Rollout, which even while frozen, provided enough momentum for him to knock Walrein out!"

"It was totally awesome," Hau said as Clemont blushed with embarrassment. He usually wasn't so praised for his battling skills, and that one had been a particularly long day, as far as he remembered. "See, the Battle Tree is like this gauntlet where you constantly battle with the same Pokémon. You choose a bunch to go in with, but when all of them are knocked out, you're done for the day."

"Sounds intense," Lillie said, her ponytail swaying slightly.

"It is! Me and Clemont fought really hard, though, right, Pipi?" His Raichu responded in the affirmative while Bonnie looked with a glowing expression to Clemont. She gave a less favorable one to the Pokédex that was displaying the video, though. "In the end, out of about fifty different rounds, he made it to about, what, forty-three? I made forty-five, but we totally crushed it at the doubles."

"Turns out that Hau and myself make a rather good team, even if other trainers could consistently outclass us in the singles. Might be competition or training for the League," Clemont remarked, nodding to his erstwhile partner. The Battle Tree had been a very engaging and important experience for all of them, he felt, and his team had grown, too, particularly in the realm of learning new moves and strategies. Having to make it through with his team intact had been one of the most difficult challenges he'd been a part of.

"Well, I'm sure you must be very proud of yourselves," Lillie asserted, hands going behind her back as she beamed at them. Bonnie looked proud, too, even as she addressed Rotom.

"That's more something to be proud of than what Rotom did. I mean, really? You can record videos now, Rotom?"

"Hey! Video recording is vital, bzzt! Just imagine the types of strategies Bonnie could learn with it. And Bonnie still hasn't shown Rotom proof!" the Pokédex challenged insistently. The two leaned in towards each other, glaring angrily, yet playfully. "Well, at least Bonnie is alive."

"Yeah, you too, stupid Pokédex," Bonnie further asserted. That particularly prickly reunion out of the way, Clemont finally stepped back, huffing out a sigh.

"Well, looks like we're almost all together again, then," he said. That seemed to be the signal to get down to business, because everyone looked at him like their fun and laughter was over for the time being. "Serena's finding Ash, and I guess that leaves us to secure the Altar of the Sunne."

"So it does," Lionel agreed. His jovial manner was gone for that moment as he walked along the barren, rock coast, glancing around. He seemed to be searching forward, though not knowing exactly where to look. Clemont walked up to join him; he may not have ever been on this part of the island, but he figured he could still be able to help. Lillie managed to beat him to the punch, however.

"The canyon is that way," she intimated to them. Everyone shifted their gazes over in the direction she was pointing and Clemont was finally offered a better view, especially with the geyser that had been blowing that way finally coming to a rather relaxed state and no longer obscuring things.

There appeared to be houses that way, humble abodes made of stone and clay, having withstood the test of time. Or, at least, some of them had. Others had crumbled into disarray, taken over by the pervading nature that Clemont constantly remarked upon in his head. Lionel stepped forward, as if wanting to move straight to the canyon. Overhead, the sun seemed to be moving towards evening, making things that were already different in color, become a reddish-orange, like it was all on fire. Finally, beyond those houses was what looked like a thin path made of high walls, hanging roots and a howling wind.

"The Vast Poni Canyon…" Clemont spoke aloud, though it was more for his benefit than for anyone else there. "That's, as far as I can tell, the only path that leads to the Altar of the Sunne. At least, it's the only one  _we_  can access right now. There might be another ground path, but rumor at the Battle Tree is that that kind of knowledge is only passed down within a very small circle of the Captain and Kahuna of the island. Otherwise, aerial assault is currently impossible, making that the only feasible path."

"Then there's Team Skull to contend with," Lionel remarked. The blond nodded. Speaking about it caused Lionel to stroke his chin in thought, like he was thinking up a battle strategy for the road that was ahead of them. "It may be a more arduous road than we realize, and even if we make it to the Altar, we'll need the Moon Flute  _and_  we'll have to take out their anti-air squad."

"Aw, don't worry about stuff like that," Hau insisted, grinning madly at the older man. Lionel surveyed him with an arched eyebrow, but Clemont, for all of his analytical nature, was far more on Hau's side than he was on Lionel's. "Ash and the others will do whatever they need to and help us out!"

"I have no doubt of that," Lionel said, though he didn't stop his forward progression. "However, they can't do everything, and nor can we rely on them for everything either. What they cannot do, must be left up to us."

"That's what working in a team is, after all," Clemont agreed. To this, Lionel nodded, still seeming thoughtful regarding their method of approach. Eventually, the hand stroking his chin reached up and ran itself through his darkened locks.

"We'll just have to be mindful of our approach. They certainly seem to have pinned us into a corner on a path like that," Lionel finally concluded. It was a conclusion that Clemont had come to the moment he saw how relatively narrow the path was. "Doesn't help that we'd like to be at the altar by sunrise, if at all possible."

"There's nothing to worry about with that," Lillie spoke up. Lionel looked at her, though he didn't turn his body to do so. Clemont did, however, and what he saw on her face was unlike anything from the Lillie he remembered. She was steely, her gaze focused, sharp, determined. This was a girl who was unwavering in her beliefs and convictions. "I think Tapu Fini will guide the way for us."

"You do?" was the obvious question. Clemont felt that Lillie must have had an obvious answer, but whether she did or not, it soon proved to be nonverbal in her response. She hitched her bag on her shoulders, facing in the direction of the ruins and began walking forward towards it, her newfound expression not once leaving her face.

Clemont finally realized: Lillie was no longer wearing the face of the victim. She had grown. No…they  _all_  had grown.

"Yes. I'm certain. I can hear it calling," Lillie said, continuing her own progression towards the Ruins of Hope. There was no wavering motion in her steps, and it inspired Clemont to follow her without asking any more. To do so would have been pointless. She clearly had something that she wished to show them. Only Lionel lingered behind, his mind more focused on the canyon they would be striking into that evening.

"So, this is where you got your Z-Ring from Tapu Fini, then?" Clemont at last asked, as he and Lillie passed through the intimidating archway to the ruins. There was a small shudder, still like that sense of trickling water, as they passed through it, and Lillie finally answered.

"It was," she said firmly.

"Congratulations, then," Clemont muttered. He genuinely felt happy that she'd been chosen, but it kept his mind going back to the wondering of why he hadn't been chosen by any of the deities. Tapu Bulu, perhaps, made sense, as it had already chosen Gladion, but still…

"It's hard to say, I think, why Tapu Fini chose me, but I think that my actions are just as much of a reason as its own decision is," Lillie pointed out, even if Clemont hadn't spoken his thoughts aloud. It proved how much the question was on all their minds. The area darkened as she said this, continually moving forward. Yet, at the same time, it also seemed to lighten up with a near otherworldly glow.

The answer for why that was happening was fairly obvious. The cave that they had emerged into, similar to the other shrines where the Tapus rested, was brightly lit with luminescent pools of water, glittering and glowing in the dark. Beyond a stretch of them, rippling and pulsating, was another entranceway from which a smell of incense was wafting out. He knew exactly what was beyond there, but his attention and focus was more attracted to the pools that were near to them. They looked similar to ones he had seen before, perhaps near the Battle Tree, or the other Tapus' shrines. Quietly, he approached one.

"Glowing pools!" Bonnie and Hau exclaimed, having obviously just come up behind them. Lillie had stopped, peering into the pools nearest to her, alongside Clemont. As he looked down, he could tell that the glowing was  _not_  coming from the water itself, but rather a luminescent plant  _beneath_  the water. Instead, the water was sharply clear, seeming almost like a mirror on its surface. Clemont looked into it.

He blinked, entranced by the image before him. It was…him. Only he was younger. In fact, he remembered the exact moment that seemed to be splayed on the surface of the water. The day he'd left Shinx behind for an award. His fist tightened. That was such a biting memory, even now that he was past it; it was the day he felt like little more than a doormat, unable to simply say "no" for the sake of his beloved friend.

"You see it, too, don't you?" Lillie whispered, and Clemont managed to drag his gaze away, his heart hurting with pain. He looked over to the girl, her green eyes shimmering with the rippling water that was reflected. "You saw a memory."

"I did," Clemont answered, offering only a nod. There was a small scream behind him, and Bonnie fell backwards, caught by Hau. She looked to be shaking, pointing forward with a trembling hand. Clemont moved towards her before she started to speak.

"That…that was…when we got…" Bonnie shook her head furiously, and stopped herself from shaking, bringing herself to a standing position. She wasn't speaking any more about it, even with Squishy and Dedenne's concerned looks, but Clemont had a very good idea of just what his little sister had seen: when she had been kidnapped by DARC. His nails began to dig into his hand. Even disappeared from this world, their effect, like Michael's, continued to linger.

"What is this water made of?" Hau questioned. He stepped forward and ran his own hand through it, pausing halfway to scooping it out. He was staring straight ahead a moment before taking his hand out. "Huh…weird. It was like watching a movie of when I was told my mom and dad had died six years ago…"

"That's what Tapu Fini's water does," Lillie said, her voice nearly in a whisper as she told them all of this. "It shows things, memories. I don't know why, exactly, but I think it forces whoever looks into the water to relive their most crushing past. I can't say why, though."

"Of course…" Clemont said. He looked back towards the water, now playing an image of Clembot exploding all around him; the moment of both his strength and weakness. "Tapu Koko's water gives strength; that was what Kiawe said. Tapu Lele gave a sense of life and nourishment. Tapu Bulu gave aberrations in nature. So, it only makes sense that Tapu Fini's would do something, as well."

"I guess," Lillie expressed, though it seemed like she wasn't entirely sure how to describe it all. Clemont leaned back over the water, and now scooped his own hand through it. Like Hau said, it felt like being jerked into a movie, a replaying of his past that he was suddenly privy to.

_You told me…that we should grow together. I was happy. Thank you._

Clemont gasped, watching the room explode all around him. The tears flinging from his eyes as he pressed the button, and that horrible screaming. It was a sight he would never forget; one that would have stopped him from moving if he didn't have more to do in that exact moment. For a second, he felt like drowning in the memory, but instead, he seemed to take solace. It was a painful memory, but still one that was a part of him.

Suddenly, that memory twisted and faded, and he was standing once more in the same chamber…yet no one else was there. Instead, there was an older man, looking just like Hapu in some way, even if Clemont could only see the side of his face.

"Please, Tapu Fini, if there is anything this old life can offer, take it from me to protect this region. To protect Hapu, so that she may inherit my will and the will of the islands. To be as herself," the man said. Clemont breathed in and out, fascinated by this window to the past. There was a Pokémon before the man, looking so similar to the other guardian deities he'd seen, but covered in a purple shell. "A storm is in Alola, and I fear it will take the lives of many more before it is stopped. Already, some have fallen. So, let mine be the last…."

"Clemont!" The inventor was pulled back, his hand flinging out droplets of water as he hit the floor, his butt slamming on to the rock. He looked around, almost heaving. In front of him were Bonnie and Hau, both looking equally disturbed. What had happened? He looked up to see Lillie there, her hand hovering above the water.

"Tapu Fini is a being of hope…or so I've read," she was speaking clearly and concisely. "Yet, I can't understand why it would show these things to us. Memories of the past here, memories of  _our_  pasts, steeped in despair…When I came here with Serena, I looked in the waters."

"What did you see…?" Clemont asked. He would have asked what Serena had seen, but knowing his friend as well as he did, he was fairly certain of what she had seen inside the depths of that pool, given his newfound knowledge of it. It could have been anything from her first Showcase, to the moment she'd snapped at Ash…or, more likely, Reeree's death.

"I saw myself," she said. The hand hovering over the pool drew upwards, placing itself on her drawstrings carefully. "I saw a little girl, cowering."

"Lillie…" Hau breathed out. At his words, Clemont stood once more, walking over to Lillie and the pool of water she was standing in front of. He reached out, and placed a hand on her shoulder. She wasn't shaking, but he could tell that she was reliving the moment.

"That's because…that was what I was…" she spoke. Without warning, the blonde plunged her hand back into the drink and Clemont felt himself jerked away. It was surreal, suddenly finding himself standing on the white floors of the Aether Foundation after having just been surrounded by pure rock. There were three people there; three familiar people in the form of Lusamine, Gladion and Lillie. Yet they were younger. Lillie was but a little girl, almost younger than Bonnie.

"Mama, isn't daddy coming back?" she asked, squeezing her mother's hand. Clemont looked to his side, noticing that the older Lillie was standing right there next to him, watching the scene of her own memory. Lusamine gave no answer, as if she was completely dead to the world, and by the time Clemont looked back, they were in Lillie's room. It was so void of personality; nothing but pure white walls, dressers and sheets.

"Lillie, it's time for your studies," Lusamine's voice called, the mother stepping into the room with her hands on her hips. Lillie pouted on her bed, a little older now.

"I'm not going to," she said, folding her arms across her chest. "I've already studied enough. I want to see a Ceremony? Can I, please?"

"Oh, don't be foolish, dear," the mother said, almost coyly. She placed herself upon the bed, snaking her hands around her daughter like the slithering tentacles of Nihilego. The young Lillie shuddered, but made no move to resist her mother. "Ceremonies are not things for prim and proper ladies to do. They'll only taint you, my beautiful Lillie. My beautiful flower…"

"Mother…" Lillie spoke, but her mother dragged her upwards, pulling her to her feet before she had the chance to say no. Lusamine held her there, smiling down at her with the very thin veneer of affection. Her hand raised upward and caressed her daughter's face.

"You're so beautiful, Lillie. If only your brother would take after your example instead of spending all his time doing foolish things," the woman said. The young Lillie hung her head, unable to resist anymore. Clemont watched, beginning to understand. "Now, come, I have a beautiful dress I'd like you to wear."

"Yes, mother…" Clemont's hand raised on its own, and the ghostly image of Lusamine phased through them, seemingly finding them at a white dinner table. Lillie was even older now, perhaps eleven or twelve at best. She wasn't alone at the table; Lusamine still sat there. Yet, for her older figure, Lillie still seemed a child. "Mother, there's the Hope Leilani being held soon and-"

"I told you to drop that foolishness, Lillie," Lusamine said with an angry tone. Something had happened. "Young ladies shouldn't wither their flowers so easily."

"I just want to leave the Paradise, mother. Just for a day," Lillie said, her spoon moving uselessly around her bowl of soup. There was the sound of a scraping chair, and Lusamine stood, her expression fraught with warning. "I have no one else to talk to, not since brother-"

"Quiet, Lillie!" She hadn't slapped her daughter, but she  _had_  roughly grabbed her face, pulling her close. Little Lillie's eyes filled with tears. "That boy is  _not_  your sibling. He's an ugly piece of trash. The outside world deserves him with its filth. But you're not yet tainted. Stay here, with me. We're still family. So long as you do the things I've taught you, we can be happy. We can be beautiful."

"Yes, mother…"

"Yes, mother…"

"Yes, mother…" It was an echo that continued on and on and on. Every image he saw. Every memory. Lillie said the same thing. Over and over. Even in Po Town, back under her mother's grasp again, it proved to be the only thing she would ever say.

"Until I was nothing but a husk," Lillie spoke, and her hand withdrew. The memories faded, placing them back in the ruins. Clemont felt a little winded, having seen into Lillie's past. He had to imagine that Serena had seen almost the exact same thing when they had traveled here earlier. Hau and Bonnie ran forward, staring into the pool but seeing nothing. Bonnie pouted, but didn't say anything.

"I understand," Clemont finally spoke moments later, regaining his breath and removing his hand from Lillie's shoulder. She nodded, adopting a smile on her face. It was encouraging to him. Despite her pain and hardships, she had managed to overcome that kind of despair and look to the future.

Thinking about it, it was all too easy to see just how the blonde before him had been so heavily influenced by Ash and Serena. Their never give up attitude, combined with their insistence to not let despair cripple them, had easily rubbed off on her in the best of ways. It made him feel a little foolish for allowing despair to chain him down for even a moment. Lillie turned away, glancing to the interior of the ruins, towards where Tapu Fini rested. Her hands had moved once more behind her back as she stared in, not looking towards any of them even once. Clemont waited, wondering if she was going to have something to say. The others did as well.

"That little girl was me," Lillie said, almost sighing out the words. Only, he knew she didn't mean it in the literal sense. "Seeing her there, in my memories, I realized that all my traveling with you hadn't changed a thing. I was still the same little girl, scared of disobeying her mother. Even now, I'm scared of having to see her again."

"Well, sure, can't be easy for ya," Hau agreed, placing his hands behind his head as he looked at her. She didn't see him, but the sentiment was more than clearly felt. Lillie's smile could even be felt from where she was standing, drawing more and more attention to her in the glowing cave. The sound of falling gravel broke Clemont's attention away and he looked up to see Lionel and Greninja at the top, staring down at them. Rotom was also there, looking somewhat bored and confused.

"But I promised myself that I would overcome everything, right then and there!" Lillie proclaimed. She tossed her fist into the air, displaying her sparkling Z-Ring proudly for all of them to see. What made it truly noticeable, however, was the way she was holding herself: the gesture was the one they had all used during the Kalos Team Tournament as a sign of victory. "I wasn't going to let my mother control me! I was going to be me!"

"Yeah! Go, Lillie!" Bonnie cheered loudly, her voice echoing around the space. Lillie lowered her hand, clasping it closely to her chest.

"When I realized that, letting go of my fear of her, I resolved to save her from her own madness," Lillie continued, her confidence eking out with every syllable. "I don't know if it's possible to do that, but I chose to turn the despair of my past into hope for our future. If I could look at her, with her own sanity, and hear her tell me the truth, love or hate, I knew it would be good enough. Maybe that's why I chose Tapu Fini, and maybe that's why Tapu Fini chose me."

"Well, whatever it is, you deserve it, Lillie," Hau said with encouragement. She finally turned, smiling at him kindly. "And we'll all be there right until the end. Right?"

"You bet!" Bonnie said, slapping her hand against Hau's, while Dedenne cheered by jumping up and down.

Clemont said nothing, still processing Lillie's words.

She was far stronger than him, he had to remark. She had turned despair into hope. Pain into resolve. Her life had been miserable, but instead of buckling and continuing to live in the shadow of her mother, she had chosen to be her own person, irrespective of that. Clemont's eyes fell downward, almost wanting to laugh over how ludicrous it all was. Perhaps the guardian deities of Alola really were fickle beings that made choices on a whim, but Clemont knew that wasn't the case. There was a balance and a reason for everything.

With a conflict on the horizon, they had to choose those who were the best for the job in every single way.

Ash was chosen by Tapu Koko for his sense of recklessness and battling spirit. More than just the zeal to win, but a fight for justice that inhabited him when any wrong was done.

Serena was chosen by Tapu Lele for her beauty and ability to bring out the best in people; their very life, itself. She embodied love, pure and simple, whether her romance with Ash, or that general sense of selflessness.

Gladion was chosen by Tapu Bulu because of his strength, almost like a counter to Ash. While he had fallen into a trap of doing things on his own, he had done it out of a sense of care, and then he had grown from his mistakes. More than that, he had acknowledged them and used them to bring out his true potential.

Now, Lillie was chosen by Tapu Fini for turning despair into hope. The horror and darkness of her past turned to light.

They all embodied the very deities which had chosen them. Clemont, however, knew he didn't embody those at all. He would never have the same strength as Ash, the amount of love as Serena, the amount of potential for growing as Gladion, and that ability to hope that Lillie had created. He had almost given in to his own insecurities! It was no wonder the Tapus wouldn't choose him!

Yet now, hearing Lillie's story, understanding the reason she was chosen to obtain the Z-Ring over any other person in Alola after Hapu's grandfather, he was okay with it. He was at peace with it.

_Because I don't need to be Ash or Serena. That's what the last month was about,_  he realized. Bonnie was looking at him curiously now as he reasoned all of this, and it was beginning to make the others do so as well. He could only imagine, given the smile that was stretching his face at the realization. Not pained or filled with despair, but one that made peace with everything.  _I just need to be there for them. On my own, I'm fine, and with them, we're all even greater._

"Lillie, thank you for sharing," he finally said, bowing to the girl that had become a cherished friend of his. She was taken aback, but appeared pleased with it at the same time. "Now, we came to visit Tapu Fini for a reason, didn't we?"

"Right!" Lillie said, pumping her fists with a little jump. On her arm, Komala yawned loudly, clearly agreeing with Lillie's enthusiasm despite his state. With a little spin to her feet, Lillie walked forward, leading the group just as Ash would. Hau stared at her with a grin, her ponytail bouncing as she disappeared into the darker portion of the shrine. Clemont beamed down at Bonnie and the siblings followed swiftly after.

Entering into the darkened room, Clemont could feel the pressure that was exuded by the guardian deity, forcing him to remain sharp and alert. That cold trickle of water felt even fiercer now, but he didn't stop, not until he saw Lillie there, kneeling and bowing before Tapu Fini, the same as the one he'd seen Hapu's grandfather pray to in the memory. That only further helped him; not even Hapu had inherited her grandfather's position, so he hadn't been the only one passed over. Nevertheless, Clemont brought himself into a kneeling position, taking Bonnie and Hau down with him as they stared at the deity.

Lillie began to speak, though it sounded less like her own words, and more like Tapu Fini putting words in her head, like a mouthpiece. "Set…the stage…Will show the safe path…My waters…"

"So, what, it's gonna guide us using water through the canyon so we don't run into Team Skull? That's pretty cool," Hau said. Bonnie instantly shushed him.

"Hope. Despair. Pain. Resolve. Peace," Lillie finished. Her Z-Ring was glowing, Clemont noticed, pulsing with a blue light from the sea stones that made its surface. Tapu Fini looked up, scanning each and every one of them. Then, it veiled itself in water and appeared to fade away into the walls of the shrine, as though it had never been there. "The time is coming. Very soon…our Champions' wills be fulfilled, to repair what was once broken…and to…stop the one in black…"

Clemont's eyes narrowed.  _The one in black…_ In his mind, that could only have been Michael, a shadow that had plagued Alola for years without anyone knowing, but he wasn't able to ask any more, given that Tapu Fini had disappeared. The glow around Lillie's Z-Ring vanished as well and she fell forward, her hands hitting the ground. Clemont straightened and stood.

"Are you all right?" he asked of the girl. She nodded.

"For some reason, hearing Tapu Fini in my head takes a lot out of me. Must have been the same for Ash and the others…Those visions…" she noted. At this moment, she pushed herself upwards, and then into a standing position. "That's the second time it showed me those visions and said those words. Visions of my own past, of the former Kahuna Koa, and of the great battle fought so long ago…I wonder if it has something to do with Nebby or the Ultra Space."

"Could just be about the battle ahead," Clemont stated, trying to think on the strange things which Lillie had spoken under Tapu Fini's influence. There was something the Tapus were attempting, but he didn't know what. The one thing he did understand, however, was that their battle was looming, and it was time to get moving.

"Time to save the world again!" Bonnie declared, throwing her own fist into the air now. Clemont and Lillie followed suit, with Hau throwing his own hand upward for the heck of it. "And having Tapu Fini with us is pretty awesome, right Squishy?"

"Brlbl!" Squishy agreed, smiling with his eyes. Clemont reached up, pushing his glasses back into place.

"Then it's time! Tapu Fini will lead us to the Altar of the Sunne in record time, and Ash and the others will meet up with us on the way!" Clemont declared, throwing his hand out. Each of his companions joined in, and they tossed their hands high. No other words being exchanged, Clemont whipped around and ran out of the shrine, back towards the pool where Lionel and Greninja were waiting. Rotom was there, too, though it seemed to have followed them for a picture of the guardian deity.

"Are we all set to go? I heard what's going on," Lionel asked of them. All of them nodded, leading the way back up and out of the ruins, on to the coast. The sun was definitely starting to set with its brilliant red and gold, and in the distance, Clemont thought he could hear and see the sounds of the Seafolk Village. Part of him wondered if the others had gotten here yet. Lionel soon surged past him, fingers cradling a pokeball of his with a fierce expression. "Our battle for Alola is about to begin. Are you ready?"

"Yes," was Lillie's affirmative response, clasping her Z-Ring. "Just hold on, Nebby. You'll be better soon."

"Let's go!" Hau and Bonnie shouted. Even Rotom appeared fired up, a flaming face on its screen to show how ready it was to battle. Clemont opted for a nod, casting his gaze over to the distant Seafolk Village for but a brief moment, believing he could see a boat docked there, though perhaps it was just wishful thinking. Nevertheless, he walked forward to stand side-by-side with Lionel. At their feet, there was a trickling sound, water running over the ground like some sort of guiding light that was racing towards the canyon.

The time for doubt and waiting was over. They had Tapu Fini with them. They had the Sun Flute with them. And they had each other. It was time to fight, and Clemont planned to give it all he had, no matter what.

* * *

The boat to Poni Island moved much faster than Ash could have ever expected, bouncing across the waves. Team Rocket clearly hadn't expected them to be moving at that kind of speed, either, given the position they were currently in, but Kahili had a certain way of making people, like the boat driver, act the way she wanted them to. In the end, it made Team Rocket go from lounging to at attention to suddenly being hunched over the sides of the ship, hurling their guts out.

"Next time, warn us before you make us hurl, older twerp!"

"Yeah, I'm not a twerp, and suck it up," Kahili refuted their entire group, folding her arms as she stood next to the boat's driver. "You're going to have worse things than an upset stomach incoming, trust me."

Considering that Kahili was the most brutally honest person Ash knew, he pegged her words as exactly right. Team Rocket was a little more reluctant to believe it, but they seemed to come around for the most part and stop themselves from barfing over the sides.

As for the rest of them, Ash ended up getting what was essentially a crash course over what had happened in the last month. It came to the point that he and Pikachu were just sitting there, staring at Serena as she finished rattling off the checklist. Really, he had zoned out after finding out that Lillie had obtained a Z-Ring from Tapu Fini, Clemont had come up with a plan, and Bonnie had pulled through with the Sun Flute, leaving only the Moon Flute to be gotten. He relayed all of this to Serena as swiftly as he thought possible.

"Is that about right?" he asked, taking some dried food from his backpack and tossing it in his mouth. It had been a long time since he'd had actual cooked food, but it looked like that was going to have to wait just a little longer, especially when Serena hadn't brought anything.

"It's good enough," she giggled out, shaking her head. She crossed her legs, looking out towards the setting sun over the ocean. Ash turned, too, noticing that the island of their destination was now approaching. He stood, walking close to the edge in order to get a better look at it. Soon, he was joined by Gladion, though neither said any words. They just looked, seeing the rising canyon and the nature-riddled coast. The closer they got, Ash thought he could see two boats docked on a far-off coast, but their own boat didn't look to be heading in that direction.

"So, this is your final trial, except for Hala?" Gladion asked. It was the first words he'd truly spoken to him as himself, and not trying to mask some other intention. Ash wasn't sure how to respond, only remembering the way that the two of them had left things. Still, he knew it would be rude to  _not_  respond.

"I guess so," Ash breathed out. He closed his eyes, letting the ocean breeze blow through himself and Pikachu before they turned to the blond boy. "I guess you've already done your trials, then?"

"Yeah, I did," he answered, reaching into his sweatshirt and pulling out the completed Trial Amulet. Ash nodded at it; he felt no pressure from seeing that, but it did turn his mind towards the trial. It had to have been vital, if Kahili felt it was better for him to do this than go straight for the others or the Moon Flute. "Look, Ash, about last month-"

"There's nothing to say about it," Ash said, cutting across him. Gladion, and what the two of them had put each other through, was something he really didn't want to deal with at the moment. There were more than enough things on his mind to occupy it without that particular mess. "Whatever happened is what happened, right? For now, we can't think about it, and just have to move forward to prevent any more disasters."

"Yeah, but…" Ash frowned at Gladion while Pikachu gazed thoughtfully at a lounging Silvally on the boat deck. This wasn't the time for it.

"We'll battle at the League, I promise. For now, we have to focus on the battle here." Gladion's mouth opened, like he wanted to say something pertinent, but he eventually closed it, deciding to simply nod instead. After what had happened, repairing their relationship wasn't going to be as easy as an apology or some words exchanged. Ash turned away, noticing they were just about at the village that Serena had described, a very familiar figure waiting upon the docks with a wave.

"Ahoy and alola, Kahili! You look well!" Hapu called cheerily, her brown clothing looking almost more muddied in the setting sun. Kahili smirked at her old friend, leaning back for a second.

"So do you! I would imagine that Kahuna Hala sent along a message?" she asked. Hapu nodded. The boat seemed to finally slow, allowing them their chance to disembark upon the town.

Before he leapt off, Ash took the entirety of the Seafolk Village in. It was a peaceful place that seemed to live a fisher's life, just as its name would suggest. Of course, Ash knew they spent more time bartering, per Serena's words, but it was still a fascinatingly different culture than what he'd seen elsewhere in Alola. Some people were out and milling around to get clear end-of-day tasks done as quickly as they could. Having taken in everything he could, Ash grabbed the railing of the boat and flung himself on to the wooden docks below.

"Ash, Serena, it's good to see you, as well. I'm sorry we missed each other when you visited a month ago," Hapu said to them, a smile reaching her eyes. She stopped before them, ignoring Kahili, who was thanking the driver. By the time she had, Gladion had pushed Team Rocket on to the docks while Hapu continued to size Ash and Serena up. He had a very distinct feeling of what was about to be said. "The looks in your eyes have changed. Serena's are clearer, decisive, and Ash, yours are more confused, but still determined."

"Thanks, I guess," Serena noted, glancing over to Ash. It was obvious they both had their share of problems, but being reminded of them didn't help matters. Kahili seemed to believe so, as well.

"Yeah, okay, Hapu, enough with the philosophical stuff. Where's Mina?" she asked, cutting straight to the heart of the matter. Ash always did appreciate that about her, even if it hurt upon initially being subjected to that kind of manner. The shorter woman looked at her friend before sighing.

"I have no idea," she finally admitted with a shrug. Kahili slumped, but Ash just looked to Serena for an answer, getting none in return; she was just as clueless as he was. "I was with her this morning, stepped out to do something near the canyon with Mudsdale, and when I came back, she was gone. Somewhere in or near the village, I'm sure, but I didn't have the time to quest for her, not with Kahuna Hala's communication."

"Damn it, that flighty girl…" Kahili groaned, slapping a hand to her forehead. "We do  _not_  have time for this. The others must be here already."

"I would say they definitely are," Gladion insisted. Ash looked to him, the boy staring (more like glaring) at the two women. "Either way, you're right, we  _don't_  have the time for all of this. Ash has his trial, we need to find the Moon Flute  _and_  the others might be making their way into the canyon as we speak."

It was easy to see what Gladion was suggesting. What was surprising was the fact that James was the first to actually speak it aloud.

"You're suggesting we split up again, aren't you, chap?" he prompted. Gladion jerked his head in a nod. To that, James sighed, staring around at his long-time companions. "All right, guess we'll go with the surly twerp two-point-oh."

"James, what are ya sayin?" Meowth asked in surprise. "You know we're not cut out for da battle!"

"No, James is right," Jessie said altogether dismissively. "We're here to take down Team Skull, not play archeologist. Bring it, surly twerp."

"Yeah, okay. That good with you, Kahili?" Gladion asked. The woman surveyed their group with pursed lips, only briefly perusing Hapu for any nonverbal advice. Eventually, she sighed.

"Yeah, that's the best we can do, depending on how long it takes to find Mina. Without our shared information, it would take us forever, with no guarantee, to locate the Moon Flute," she sighed out. Then she stepped forward, clapping a hand on Gladion's shoulder. "Do what you can. You three, behave yourselves."

"Yes, ma'am!" They saluted her while Gladion offered Ash and Serena a nod before tearing off with Silvally. Team Rocket scrambled off after the pair, almost yelling at him to slow down. Once they were on their way, Ash turned to face Hapu.

"So, we need to find Mina, right? The trial captain?" he asked, placing his arms across his chest in thought. "Any idea how?"

"One crosses my mind," Hapu admitted. Yet again, Ash noticed her eyes and Kahili's meet, before the both of them grinned. It made Ash's body tense up, preparing itself for what was about to begin. Then, Hapu laid down the law. "In fact, why don't we consider it the start of Mina's trial and my Grand Trial, both? Find the captain with the help of the citizens of the Seafolk Village in an hour or less. Then, we'll have the joint trial battle for your  _real_  trial."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So, this chapter had quite a bit, didn't it? I'd like to think it did. For all we've shown of Lillie, I wanted the chance to really see who she was before all this: an extreme doormat for her mother; someone who was trodden upon for so long, she was a shell of herself until meeting the others and breaking free. It's also a ridiculously important plot point for the upcoming chapters, but I'll leave you to ponder how. As for other things, the battle is about to begin and the action will come roaring in next chapter with something great, all while Gladion moves to team up with the rest. Will they make it? Will they succeed? Will Ash find his answer? Just hold on to find out!
> 
> These have been some of the hardest chapters to write, so I truly hope you're enjoying it. Until that very next chapter, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	6. A Gift

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It would seem I unintentionally confused people about the joint Trial-Grand Trial. However, this should clear things up immensely, so I won't bother explaining myself. That said, on to Chapter 6, my friends!

Chapter 6

A Gift

"Find the captain, huh? Should be easy enough, right, Pikachu?" Ash asked of his companion on his shoulder. Pikachu seemed distracted a moment, staring off at where Gladion and Silvally had vanished. Of course, Ash hoped that they'd all be okay with the battle that was looming on the horizon, too, but now wasn't the time for the focus to be on that. "Pikachu, if we want to help the others, we have to focus on this right now, okay?"

"Pi…Pika!" Pikachu agreed, fastening himself into a stern expression in preparation for the trial ahead. Ash grinned at him and faced forward, looking in to the Seafolk Village. Hapu had stepped aside, as if to speak with Kahili at length.

Now that his trial had supposedly begun, Ash took the time to look more properly at the village that rested before him. In the setting sun, it made everything look almost amber in color, and made it doubly more peaceful, as well. Since some of the village's work on the water seemed to be winding down for the day, most people were making their way back inside the various buildings around the area, each one having its own distinct shape as they floated on pontoons. A large group was heading for a very large building that, judging from the smells inside, was a restaurant. Others were going to their rather unique homes or the Pokémon Center (which at a second glance, looked just as different as the rest of the village). The only building that looked to actually be completely shutting down was something that looked like a Ceremony Hall, though like the rest of the village, it was completely different from any other he'd seen before. In fact, he was so interested in that unique feel from the building that he turned to Serena.

"Is that a Ceremony Hall? 'Cause, I didn't think they had Ceremonies here," he said. His girlfriend stepped forward, placing a hand on his shoulder while she seemed to adjust her shoe.

"It is. This is the only Ceremony held on the island, though," Serena told him, now placing her foot down. "Jessie won her third Lei here, actually. But Poni having such a small population is the reason only three Leis are needed instead of four."

"Oh. That's interesting," Ash said. He actually didn't find it all that captivating, and Serena seemed to know that, because she laughed before sliding her hand down his arm to take his hand in hers. Then, she smiled a little.

"Come on. I know someone who can help, I think," she said. It felt nice, her hand in his again. The touch of her fingers on his skin was electrifying, much more than it had been a month ago. Then again, he'd grown immensely, and some of that part that grew was the one that yearned for his girlfriend, even if he never vocalized it to the somewhat aloof Kahili. Had he not been in the middle of his trial, he'd have actually liked to go to somewhere else and just spend time with her.

But now wasn't the time for that.

"Uh…well, only if…" Ash looked over to Kahili and Hapu, trying to make sure whether it was in the rules for him to be allowed help from Serena. His eyes caught on to the shorter woman's own gaze and she nodded with a smile, her bushy black hair flying about. Taking that as a yes, he squeezed Serena's hand a little, as if indicating for her to lead the way.

She did just that, pulling him along with confidence as he and Pikachu just went along for the ride. He was surprised by how strong Serena had grown in the physical sense, even though he wasn't exactly resisting her pull. A while ago, he never would have imagined that spending a month apart would make them all grow immensely, but seeing Serena's extra confidence, conviction and strength, he knew it was for the best. Even for himself, who had yet to find his answers, he had grown. Now, Ash couldn't wait to see Clemont, Bonnie and Lillie again.

"So, who is it that you think can help, Serena?" Ash asked of his girlfriend. She turned her head, winking at him a little, but providing no actual answer. She just continued to drag him along the wooden planks (sturdy as they were) that made up the Seafolk Village. As they were pulled along, Ash and Pikachu both took the chance to look a little further and in more detail at the village, more closely examining the odd designs of some of the houses. It made them all seem extremely nomadic, thanks to the eclectic nature of the homes. Even with their own odd designs, it still made the Pokémon Center and Ceremony Hall stand out all the more. Said weirdness could have made it either easier or harder to locate the trial captain at the same time, Ash knew.

"Ta-da! Here we are!" Serena announced emphatically, throwing her hands up as they stood outside what looked like the floating restaurant. People were chattering inside, though it was still relatively quiet, only holding to the ambient sound of voices.

"Sure, I'm hungry, but how does that help with the trial?" Ash asked, pointing to the open door of the restaurant. He could tell light was coming out of it, given the darkening horizon, but he still couldn't fathom how this place would help.

"Oh, Ash, it's the person  _inside_  that can help," she told him, shaking her head with amusement. It felt nice to find a little humor amidst all the heavy stuff. Serena let go of his hand and walked around to stand behind him, placing her hands on his back and beginning to push him inside. "Alola!"

"Alola!" cried the crowd at large at their entrance and greeting cry, the loudest coming from a man sitting at the counter, in particular. He appeared to be a man of authority with a bright blue vest and relaxed clothing, stroking his bearded chin as his longer black hair stuck out amidst all the revelers there from a hard day's work. "Aye, it's Miss Serena! Have ya been hale and hearty?"

"Miss Serena! The flower of Kalos!"

"Hic, she's a beaut, she is!" hiccupped another man, making Ash look back to his girlfriend, who was waving in turn to the one that had said it. "But where's that Jessilie! Now,  _that_  was a woman!"

"Only because she reminds you of your wife! Get your head back to reality, Floyd!" Another man rapped that man over the head and laughter sounded around the restaurant, though it felt more like some kind of olden day tavern, if Ash was honest. Serena walked forward towards the authoritative man that was also laughing.

"I'm well, Alaka," Serena said to him, smiling brightly as always. The man tipped his head back and laughed heartily. Ash watched the exchange, feeling slightly baffled alongside Pikachu. Clearly Serena knew this man, and many of the others in the restaurant, if the way she was speaking with them was anything to go by. Ash just shoved his hands into his pockets and watched them with a smile. "How have you all been?"

"Hard day's work, hard day's food. Can't ask for much more," the man, Alaka, laughed out; it was dawning on Ash how so many people's names sounded the same in Alola, too, making him wonder if Mina's name was distinct enough to find. He did have to agree with the chuckling man, though. "You and Miss Lillie find what you were looking for?"

"Almost. I think I have an idea, at least. You haven't heard anything different, have you?" the honey blonde asked, leaning in towards the man with a rather knowing grin on her face. It was strange, Ash felt, for Serena to be introducing  _him_  to someone, rather than the other way around. Not that she had introduced him quite yet.

"Can't say anyone has heard anything of note, but come now, you know information here isn't free!" Alaka said, wagging a finger at her with a tiny grin on his lips. "That said, any idea what's going on with the island? Two ships at Poni Breaker Coast, some scuff up by the Battle Tree and rumor has it that there's been lots of movement in the canyon."

"Can't give information for free," Serena answered him with a wink. Ash was really and truly lost, now. Sure, he knew that Serena had spent some time here, searching for her father (the only subject she didn't broach with him as of yet) but it was still weird how familiar she seemed to be with these older men.

"Ha ha!" Alaka laughed, patting at his portly stomach with enthusiasm. "Well played, Miss Serena! Well played! You've really learned the customs! Fitting for an Ali'i ka Leilani."

"I'll try my best," Serena said, displaying her usual sense of modesty. Alaka seemed to like that, because he reached forward and patted her on the head. Then his eyes swiveled over to Ash, who stared right back at him. Introductions weren't coming right away, but he figured that there was nothing else for it, and he stepped forward.

"Well, how about answering where the captain is," he said confidently, hoping that same sense of confidence could garner him an answer. The older man continued to watch him a moment, considering his figure discerningly, though not in the same way that Hapu, Kahili and Hala liked to. It was more a man deciding how much to divulge.

"This is the boyfriend I mentioned, Ash," Serena interjected, quick to head off any complications. "He's here to take the final trial. Ash, this is Chief Alaka, head of the Seafolk Village."

"Nice to meet ya," Alaka said, raising a hand in greeting. He still looked to be considering things, once more stroking his beard with his other hand. Ash waited for an answer, but didn't seem to be getting one from the man whatsoever. Someone else did choose to answer, though.

"You talking about Mina?" said one of the older crowd. Ash turned to look at who had said it, getting a decent view of the nicely furnished restaurant. It seemed like it was part tavern, part family space, especially with the old jukebox in a corner, though it looked inoperable. "She was in here earlier, aye?"

"Yeah, she was lookin' for tomatoes for her artwork…weird girl…" the man behind the counter said with a shake of his head. It certainly sounded weird enough, though Ash wasn't sure how that applied to him finding the captain. Another man in the crowd of people there snorted.

"Weird? Call it normal for the Successful Sisters," the snorting man said with intense amusement. "Kahili goes hitting golf balls off the pier, Mina uses all sorts of random things for artwork and Hapu…well, Hapu's normal, at least."

"That's because her grandfather was as disciplined as could be…Lord, I miss Koa…" an older man sighed out, leaning back against a chair. Ash found it all rather fascinating, but it wasn't like it helped him get closer to actually  _finding_ Mina. With that in mind, he turned to the chieftain and looked him straight in the eyes.

"I need to find her, anyway," he spoke sternly, imparting the urgency that the situation was calling for. This wasn't about just completing his trials, but about joining with his friends for the battle up ahead. "Do you know where she went? It's important."

"We might…she  _could have_  said something," Alaka chuckled out. In fact, they were all chuckling with amusement. It wasn't that they were making fun of him, either. Ash could tell they weren't, but rather it was that they were holding back on something. Either way, it all seemed funny to them, but a little tiresome to Serena, who sighed. Ash looked at Pikachu, his best friend shrugging a little.

"So, wait…do you or don't you know?" The chuckles increased and Alaka swung his legs around, planting his feet powerfully on the ground.

"We might know, and we  _might_  be able to tell you what she mumbled out," the chief said, clapping his hands together a few times. "That is,  _if_  you give us a little something in return."

"Okay, what?" If the man was surprised by Ash's sheer willingness to jump right in, he didn't show it. In fact, he seemed to be all business, like this was really just the daily grind and nothing more to it. The men sitting around the restaurant all followed the now walking chief, some with grins, others with questioning looks. Eventually, Alaka stopped next to the jukebox.

"This thing has been broken a long while," he explained with a sly little grin as he leaned against the musical device. "It's a shame, too, because this place should be so much more lively if it worked, but it's not, because it doesn't. I want you to fix it. If you do, we'll tell you where Mina's current little art hideaway is."

"Uh…" Ash vocalized, unsure what to say. He was certainly no good at doing these kinds of things like Clemont was, so he had no idea how he could even do it in any reasonable amount of time.  _And Clemont thinks_ he's  _the useless one…_

"We'll take care of it," Serena insisted, pumping her fist just a little. Alaka patted the top of the jukebox and stepped away, looking satisfied with the answer. Ash looked to his girlfriend, wondering just what was going through her mind as she took him and pulled him over to the jukebox. The men in the restaurant went back to whatever they were doing, almost completely ignoring them as they approached the broken piece of machinery. Ash sighed liberally.

"Serena…I'm not Clemont," he told her. At this, she turned to him, taking out two of her pokeballs.

"I know," she said with a nod. Then she smiled at him. "But I know you can do this; you always do the things you have to, and nothing we do is a waste of time." Ash just blinked. She was right. He grinned in response, turning to Pikachu with a smile.

"Well, then, let's do this, Pikachu!" he cheered and Pikachu joined with him. Looking back for a moment, Ash noticed that while the others weren't even paying attention, guzzling down drinks or gobbling up food, the chieftain of their little village was watching him almost carefully (though he tried to pretend that he wasn't). A bright light from next to Serena showed the forms of Pancham and Sandshrew emerging.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried, leaping from Ash's shoulders to greet the two members of Serena's team. Sandshrew looked the most energetic about seeing Pikachu again, running forward to hug him. By Ash's estimation, the icy little mouse looked more mature than before; clearly, Serena had put in quite the bit of effort over the last month. He couldn't wait to see him in action.

Tearing his thoughts away from that, Ash focused in on the jukebox in front of him, completely inoperable. He didn't have much experience with machines, but after watching Clemont all this time, he had at least a vague idea of where to start. Grabbing ahold of it, Ash heaved it forward, moving the jukebox so that the back was facing him. Sure enough, there was a rusted panel there that likely led to the interior, and Ash grabbed at it. He began to pull, but found that the panel was holding fast.

"I've got an idea. Sandshrew, can you use Metal Claw to pull the panel back? But do it carefully!" Serena asked of her Pokémon.

"Shrewshrew!" Sandshrew said happily, running forward. Ash watched as his tiny little claw glowed a bright silver, larger than it was before, and he dug it into the back panel. Then he pulled slowly until, at last, the panel swung open, revealing the complicated contents of the interior. Pancham was now walking forward, staring into the abyss of machinery. Ash was staring, too, but there were so many parts that he simply wasn't all that sure of what there was to do next, and it baffled him.

"One step at a time," he said, and he looked down to the Playful Pokémon that was considering the contents inside. "Pancham, can I ask a favor?"

"Champan?" Pancham asked, turning his stare up to him.

"I want you to go in there and see if there's anything disconnected or something like that. I mean, that would be the first thing Clemont would look for, right?" Pancham nodded in agreement and he practically jumped inside the jukebox. Pikachu tilted his head as he watched the progress of movement inside, while Sandshrew seemed to cheer his fellow Pokémon on. Ash wasn't particularly sure if he'd find anything he could use or even help to figure it out, but he knew to try his best. Eventually, Pancham returned, pulling out two loose wires, one of them with a small box hanging from it. "What is it…?"

"It looks like some kind of electrical device?" Serena asked, though it was obvious that she was even less savvy than he was when it came to this sort of thing. Ash thanked Pancham, who finished exiting from the interior, and took the wire with the box, holding it upwards. It did seem to be electrical in nature, like it could store electricity and send it through the wire it was hanging from to power the jukebox.

"Well, nothing to do but try it! Pikachu, charge it up!" Ash said, holding the box out to his perennial partner. Pikachu nodded, touching his cheek up against it.

"Chuuuuuuuuu!" he cried. Electricity sparked and pulsed along his little red sacs. It flowed into the box and Ash saw said box lighting up. His fingers tingled a little, but he was so used to Pikachu's brand of electricity that it didn't bother him. All of a sudden, the jukebox lit up and began blasting out some brand of rock music, much to his surprise.

"Hey, we got it to-!" Ash's voice died down, mostly because the jukebox did as well, as though it only took a small fraction of the electricity. He frowned at that, staring at the once more dead box in his hand. Then his hand looked over to the other frayed wire. Then back to the box. The idea struck in his brain: he needed to connect them! "But this wire is too frayed…"

"Don't have a problem with that," one of the men at the tables said, standing up and scooting his chair out. He took off his cap and ran his hand through his hair. "I got some tools back at home. Don't think it violates an agreement to bring a supply, does it, chief?"

"Not at all. Make sure you bring the family, too. Once Ash gets this jukebox running, we can make this place a more proper family establishment, too," the chief responded with a rumbling laughter. The man seemed to agree with this, because he was out the door in seconds. Ash watched the spot he left and then turned back to his task. Connecting the wire would probably help, but even with that, he had to wonder how it would remain powered. Frowning, he stuck his face closer to the jukebox and its contents.

"You know, science is amazing and all, but sometimes it doesn't make sense…" Ash noted. Serena laughed at that as Ash glared at the confusing contents of the jukebox. In the end, he couldn't figure it out all that well, and just figured that what he was going to do would be good enough. He thankfully didn't have to wait for too long before the man appeared, tossing over what looked like a pair of wire trimmers and some connective material. Behind him was a woman with two kids (kids that lit up with happiness and wanted to play with Pancham and Sandshrew).

"That should be everything you need," the man said, leaning against the wall to let the trainer work. Ash nodded and quickly tried to remember all the things that Clemont would do to get these kinds of things running. He took the trimmers and pared down the wire so it looked proper, and then attached it to the box before connecting it all securely, including the other side. Nothing happened, yet, though.

"Well, we'll give it one more go! Pikachu, charge it up!" Pikachu looked, if anything, even more confident than before. He strode up to it, once more putting his cheek to it as the others all backed away. "Let's go and give it everything we've got!"

"Piiiiiiikaaaaaachuuuuuuuu!" Pikachu roared out and the electricity blasted out from his body. Ash grinned at him as the jukebox lit up like crazy, the electricity circling around and playing that rock music once again. It almost sounded like something he wished he would hear during a Gym battle or something. Ash leaned forward, bumping fists with Pikachu, feeling a bit of that spark, himself. His Z-Ring felt hot, glowing bright yellow, but he ignored it until, at last, Pikachu felt he was done.

The jukebox was playing…and it kept playing. In fact, now that Ash looked, he could see the electricity keeping itself on a constant circuit that powered the device, at least as long as it was plugged in.

"Yay! Music!"

"Let's dance, honey!"

"What a wonderful sound!" Ash stepped away, closing the panel and moving the jukebox back into position, while those around them began to dance. It must have been quite the show, because there was movement outside in the sunset, indicating that all manner of people were arriving to take part in the music. Even Kahili was popping her head in while Ash and Serena returned towards the chieftain.

"Nice!" she said before looking over and winking to the chief. "Been a while!"

"Sometimes I think not long enough. Haven't hit any fishermen with golf balls lately, have you?" the chief asked. Instead of denying it, or seeming to claim that it was just one time, Kahili laughed. That provided enough ample distraction for the chief to turn back to Ash. He grinned back at the man, reveling in the sound of music and those dancing around them. Serena was watching them all, too, as though she'd suddenly struck upon something in her brain. It seemed to grow with every person that left to grab their families. Whatever it was, she didn't share it with him.

"So, how about where the captain is?" Ash asked, trying to not sound impatient. To this, the chief laughed heartily.

"Fair enough. Miss Serena, you know the Magikarp house over into the wilds a little, right?" To this question, Serena nodded. "That's where you'll find Mina. She had said something about painting the sunrise on the ocean, and that's the best spot."

"Got it!" Serena said positively, once more taking Ash's hand.

"Good to see you again, chief," Kahili said one more time, adding in a wink. The chief rolled his eyes, but that was the extent of it as they all left the now bustling restaurant. Serena took the lead once more, dragging Ash along the docks again. Weird as it was to admit, he liked this very confident version of Serena. Walking next to them was Kahili, who was soon joined by a rather laconic Hapu.

Their little quartet continued along silently as they neared the Pokémon Center. Ash felt his stomach rumble a bit, but Pikachu just dove in his bag to grab some leftover food, which they both gobbled down as they remained in transit. It wasn't long after that, when they were stepping off the wooden portions of the Seafolk Village and onto the dirt and grass plains of the wild. In the sunset, it looked beautiful, though there wasn't much time to revel in the natural beauty of Poni Island; not with Serena turning him back towards the coast. That trip felt incredibly short, in the end.

"Ta-da! The Magikarp house!" Serena said, stopping short outside the very obviously, fish-designed house. Ash let go of her hand and stepped forward, Hapu coming to his side. He opened his mouth to call out, but…

"Mina! Mina!" Hapu barked out sharply. There was no response, at least at first. Then, for just a second, a woman popped her head out. From the portion that was exposed, she looked to have blonde hair, splattered with paint. She almost seemed dazed and out of it, too.

"Ugh…you flighty girl, get your butt out here," Kahili snapped, brushing past all of them brusquely to grab ahold of this "Mina" and pull her out of the house. Ash craned his neck, looking inside and realizing that it looked like an absolute mess of paint and easels and all other manner of art supplies. Heck, Mina, herself, looked like a walking art repository to begin with! Her shirt and pants were all splattered with paint and she looked almost tired…or maybe just completely disconnected from the world.

"Oh, Kahili…you're here?" Mina asked, her dazed expression turning into a smile.

"Yes, I'm here, or did you conveniently forget everything Hapu told you…?" the woman said. To no one's surprise except Serena's, Kahili rapped the woman on the head. "We're in crisis mode here and you're painting the  _ocean_?"

"I felt inspired," Mina answered, folding her arms. She was no longer acting apathetic, her tone becoming sharper. "Though I still feel something's lacking…"

"Maybe a strong battle is what you need," Hapu suggested. Ash watched the three women seemingly reuniting, and it appeared to him just how close the three of them were despite their vastly differing personalities. It was a positive sight to see, if he was honest, and it was something fulfilling; it was like each filled in for where the other lacked, which seemed a bit like himself with Serena and Clemont. Yet, at the edge of his mind, Ash felt that something said he didn't quite understand them…not yet, at least.

"That might do it…the last time I was inspired was when we visited the Battle Tree. Do you have anything in mind?" Mina asked, tapping a finger to her lips and smearing some paint across it. Kahili chuckled, shaking her head a little.

"Boy, do we ever! We'll save the information sharing for later, I guess. Not much we can do about it while you're in one of your 'uninspired' modes." Ash quirked an eyebrow, watching as Hapu and Kahili then both turned to him. This kind of movement actually seemed to attract Mina's attention, because she looked up at him and then just stared. Her eyes briefly flicked over to Serena, but beyond that she remained focused on Ash.

"Trial-goer?" Mina finally asked.

"I am," Ash replied, putting a step forward as Pikachu's cheeks sparked with challenge. Mina now nodded her head as Kahili placed a hand on the captain's shoulder.

"He's  _the_  trial-goer. For the big one. You know, the one you never use but are in charge of sealing?" Mina's eyebrows flew upwards and even Ash had to consider Kahili carefully. Clearly this one trial was bigger than she was letting on. His eyes shifted along, seeing Mina's eyes now narrow as Hapu gripped at a pokeball. It was like there was already this willingness to fight. For all of Alola's laidback nature, Ash had finally realized that its inhabitants liked getting their battles underway.

"You sure he can hack it? Last guy that came took one look and declined, even though I gave him the crystal from some natural deposits after he agreed to help me paint something. Hapu remembers," Mina stated, following her question. Her distracted voice was gone, replaced with someone sharp, like there were different modes between her artist persona and her captain persona. Not quite the same as Lana, as she seemed to shift them more gradually, but still easily similar. "Even you nearly…"

"I can take anything!" Ash proclaimed, throwing a fist up powerfully. Hapu chuckled a bit.

"He's a lively one," the Kahuna explained to her captain. "But I do believe he could, you know? He's certainly not like that dragon trainer who only wanted the crystal. He  _needs_  and  _wants_ this. And if we stand any chance of winning in the battle for Alola ahead, we believe it's necessary for him to take the final trial. Understand?"

Mina didn't answer right away. She continued staring, her eyes occasionally going backwards to her art. The sun continued to sink lower, making Ash feel they were running out of time, but he tried to not let it bother him. Eventually, the captain sighed. "Well, if the two of you say so. You're much wiser than I am."

"Good, you know your place," Kahili smirked out, though Ash could tell it was all in good fun. Mina brushed her off and stepped forward, Kahili's hand falling away. Ash's foot shifted, already gearing up for a battle that was most certain to come. He could tell from Mina's very movement that this was her intention.

"Very well, then. If you want the final trial, you'll need to  _earn_  your access by beating me. I usually don't like battling all that much, but if Kahili says so, maybe you can inspire me."

"And I'll be taking part as well," Hapu said calmly. Mina took that in stride, not arguing against it or for it in any way whatsoever. "Considering what time we have left, we'll do trial and Grand Trial both. Does that work for you, Ash?"

"Like you need to ask!" Ash said, quickly slinging his backpack off from his shoulders. The two women he would be facing were walking away, out towards a stretch of the wilds that would be used for the battlefield. It was odd to see the three of them all interact together, this almost silent nature of knowing what was needed and when on full display. Some of it called in a reflection on his own relationships, while the rest of it contrasted them with the broken friendship of Kukui, Akela and Guzma. "Serena, can you watch over my bag for me? And Pikachu, you mind joining her, just for this?"

"Chu…" Pikachu agreed, although rather reluctantly. Serena also accepted his request, taking his bag and walking over to a tree to watch. Ash walked forward, himself, in order to stand across from both Hapu and Mina, with Kahili in the middle like a referee.

"All right, I'll referee for you," she said quickly, confirming the thoughts. "This is a trial and Grand Trial battle between the captain, Mina, and Kahuna, Hapu, against the trial-goer, Ash. It will be a double battle, with each side being allowed only two Pokémon and no substitutions allowed. Should the trial-goer win, he'll clear his Grand Trial and be allowed access to the final trial on Poni Island. Are these terms agreeable?"

"Isn't that what he came here for?" Mina asked, like it was obvious. Ash studied her. Hapu was a little easier to figure out, being the type of wise mediator that could read a situation, and he knew Kahili far too well as the brash yet level-headed instigator of action, but he wasn't sure what Mina was. He knew he was about to find out, though, and it excited him. He nodded with Hapu, accepting the terms of the battle.

"Then let the battle begin!"

"Mudsdale, please help!" Hapu called, tossing her pokeball forth to call the large Pokémon. Ash wasn't surprised in the least at the sight of the large Mudsdale that appeared, stamping at the ground and whinnying. He knew it was coming; now he just had to figure out a way around it.

"Ribombee, let's paint this picture of battle," Mina said, more relaxed than even Hapu was. She was sharper than before, but apparently, it didn't change her disposition completely. Appearing from her pokeball was a Pokémon that Ash had never seen before, though it looked like a different kind of Cutiefly, with a brown body and fluttering wings; that told Ash a little about what he was up against, even if it couldn't be termed as much. Ash reached for both of his pokeballs.

"Toucannon, Kommo-o, I choose you!" Ash called out, tossing both of his pokeballs outward. They exploded with light and his brave flier and noble dragon both emerged with cries of their own, eyeing and ready to battle the foes before them. Ash's body crouched into a battle stance, and neither Hapu nor Mina made a move. They were waiting for him. "Let's kick it off with Flame Charge and Clanging Scales!"

"Toucah!" Toucannon cried sharply. She flapped backwards a little, and then her body erupted with flames, shooting right towards Mudsdale. Kommo-o, likewise, rattled the loud sounds of the scales that made up his body. He looked back to Ash and nodded. Then the scales fired out, each emitting a powerful soundwave. They didn't just aim for Mudsdale, though, but for Ribombee, as well. He wanted to test his theory.

"Kohm!" Kommo-o cried as his scales went flying out sharply. Toucannon had already reached Mudsdale and slammed into its side, pushing it a slight distance back from the hurtling scales. As a result, the scales reached Ribombee first…but did nothing, impacting but not moving it in the slightest.

"I knew it…it's a Fairy type," Ash said under his breath. Hapu and Mina were on the move now, Ash snapping to attention, especially when he saw Mudsdale glowing red.

"Double Kick! Block those scales!" Hapu called. The power behind her statement helped Ash to realize he was battling a Kahuna.

"Quiver Dance," Mina said to her Ribombee. Both Pokémon moved simultaneously, one acting to ultimately help the other. They seemed so mismatched, Ash noticed, yet they were a perfect and seamless blend. Ribombee began to move quickly, glowing red, itself, as it zipped all around in an omnidirectional fashion. Meanwhile, Mudsdale whipped right around and kicked out its back legs to smash the scales apart, even as they regrew on Kommo-o's body. Ash shook his head. This was no time to get psyched out. It was time for the battle; time to find an answer through battle. He had to focus.

"Focus our attacks on Mudsdale, right now. Use Sky Uppercut!" Ash commanded, sweeping his arm out. Kommo-o acted instantly, rushing forward. For his bulk, he always proved to be faster than one would expect, and in seconds, his glowing fist jabbed upward, slamming into Mudsdale's underbelly. It drove the horse upwards, right in Toucannon's range. "Now, Hyper Voice!"

"TOUCAAAAAAAAAN!" Toucannon cried. The soundwaves that came off were red in color, almost blending in with the sunset that was shining across the wilds. Ash's ears perked, noticing that some Pokémon had come to watch the battle being held. The waves battered Mudsdale, who was glowing red once more. Ash grit his teeth.  _That's right…its ability is Stamina…so I have to avoid physical attacks._

Mudsdale was blasted back, slamming on to the ground, winded from Toucannon's strike, but getting back up once again. "Ribombee, Draining Kiss!"

"Beebee!" Ribombee squeaked out, and it flew forward, glittering with a pink glow. Ash turned, calling for Kommo-o to dodge as Ribombee struck. He didn't move fast enough as Ribombee made contact, kissing against the dragon's side. Kommo-o was blasted back from the contact, he, too, now glowing red. A yellow orb shot out from his body and into Ribombee.

"Heavy Slam!" Hapu called out. Mudsdale was on the move, barreling right for Kommo-o. Ash acted on instinct.

"Slow it down with Feather Dance!" Toucannon shot forward, flapping her wings furiously. The feathers shot forward, blanketing the distance in front of Kommo-o as Mudsdale charged forward. The attack still made contact, despite a slight slowing as Mudsdale stampeded through the feathers, once more firing Kommo-o across the battlefield once it made contact. It didn't stop there, either, Mudsdale's legs trampling over the Dragon type with its slamming while it continued on. "Now, Poison Jab!"

"You're only making the battle take longer, Ash," Hapu said, almost like she was disappointed. Ash just narrowed his gaze; he may not have known what he wanted out of battle, but he still knew how to  _read_  a battle. "Iron Defense!"

"Muuuuud!" Mudsdale whinnied out. Its body now glowed a bright and gleaming silver, right on top of Kommo-o. Ash's loyal Pokémon struck out, arms glowing purple as he pummeled forward. It drove Mudsdale off of him, though the Draft Horse Pokémon hardly looked damaged in the slightest. It was more like a light breeze that blew across it than a full-force attack.

"Pollen Puff," Mina called out. Ash clenched his fist. This battle was proving more complicated than he had hoped for. Ribombee's wings fluttered rapidly and little white spores floated outward. Kommo-o brought itself to a standing position while Toucannon hung back, waiting for orders. Ash acted.

"Flame Charge on Ribombee!" he called. Toucannon surged forward, body alighting with flame. She blasted into the pollen, burning some of it away. It wasn't enough for all of it, though, and suddenly the pollen exploded. The attack battered Toucannon and Kommo-o with the green powder of the explosive force. The latter crossed his arms to defend, while Toucannon kept going, propelling forward with the force of her flaming speed, and slammed into Ribombee, knocking it aside. Ash looked to Mudsdale, seeing it glowing green…like it was healing. "Well, great…"

"Quiver Dance!" Mina cried now, clearly sounding more energetic since Ribombee had actually taken damage for the first time in the fight. Ribombee glowed again and zipped around, getting faster. Toucannon had gotten faster, herself, but it seemed to have nothing on the Bee Fly Pokémon. "Stun Spore!"

"Get out of the way! Kommo-o, use Poison Jab on Ribombee!" Ash called. Kommo-o moved forward, both arms glowing bright purple. He moved his arms back for a second, giving Toucannon the momentum and chance to pull away. A dust of what looked like yellow pollen particles burst out from Ribombee's wings. It barely touched upon Toucannon's wing, though she convulsed, while the majority hit Kommo-o. Thankfully, his punching purple fist snapped forward and jabbed into Ribombee, sending it flying away, outside of the range of attack.

Mudsdale, however, was very much in the range of attack.

"Use High Horsepower!" Hapu commanded. Mudsdale once more whipped around, slamming a powerful hindleg into Kommo-o.

"Block it!" Ash called. Kommo-o crossed his arms just in time for the attack to slam into him. He dug his feet in, clenching under the pain of the attack and paralysis, but still holding his ground. "Push forward with X-Scissor!"

"That won't be enough," Hapu said. Ribombee was slowly returning to the battlefield. Ash flitted his eyes all around the space, giving careful attention to everything he could. Kommo-o's crossed arms glowed a bright and powerful purple before snapping forth, colliding with Mudsdale. The horse didn't look affected at all, just as Hapu said, but that wasn't his aim.

"Now, rapid fire Poison Jab!" Ash yelled, swinging his fist upward. Kommo-o roared, both arms yet again glowing a bright, yet sickly, purple. He stepped forward, pummeling the fists on to every inch that he could of Mudsdale's body. Ash's fist tightened, and his teeth clenched. Then he saw it. Mudsdale leg slipped, a purple hue on its face despite the pulsing red aura around its body. "Yes! Toucannon, Beak Blast!"

"Draining Kiss!" Mina called. Ribombee was back in the battle, but instead of the Pokémon, Ash looked at the trainer. Mina was calm, like she genuinely didn't care about the result of the battle, but rather the content of it. Hapu seemed the same way. Perhaps that was what made them work together so well. At last, Ash was understanding their pattern and their friendship: they worked well because they were so mismatched otherwise.

"Riboooo…" Ribombee cheered out, glowing pink again. Meanwhile, Toucannon's beak was charging, beginning to burn red hot. Ribombee soared straight for Kommo-o while Mudsdale suffered under the affliction of poison.

"Intercept it!" Ash called. Toucannon, beak still charging, surged forward, right in between Ribombee and the slow moving Kommo-o, shaking off the slight paralysis that was in her wing. Instead of the Draining Kiss hitting Kommo-o for the potential maximum damage, it struck on the beak that got in the way. A blaze of fire traveled along the Fairy type, and Toucannon's attack exploded outward, flinging Ribombee away. "Now, Sky Uppercut! Blast it away!"

"Pollen Puff!" Ribombee was flying through the air, but its wings were quivering, preparing to send out that deadly blaze of pollen from before. Kommo-o was moving, if a little slower, but he got there in time to jab a fist up to Ribombee, sending it spiraling into the air.

"All right, Hyper Voice! Blow it away!" Ash kept an eye on the trainers, now, wondering how they would counter the advantage that he was pressing. Both Mina's and Hapu's Pokémon were suffering under status effects, and while Kommo-o and Toucannon were as well, at least they weren't having their health and stamina taken away. Toucannon was striking, sending out the red-orange soundwaves that was blowing the pollen into the sky from the force, away from all parties involved.

Though there was still the  _other_  issue that Ash knew could happen to turn the tide of battle.

"Kommo-o, move in with Sky Uppercut! Toucannon, time for a special!" Ash said, bringing his arms forward and crossing them in front of his face. He watched the women, noticing Hapu sliding her eyes over to Mina. Said artist agreed and crossed her own. Ash grinned; he had hoped to force it on at least one of them. Kommo-o struck, blasting Ribombee away once more with the same attack as before, even if it did little damage. Ash's arms then began to move, placing themselves into the correct position as his Z-Ring glowed white. "Breakneck Blitz!"

"Ribombee, let's intercept," Mina called, uncrossing her arms and then placing them forward. Soon, her hands formed a heart and she began to flutter, much like her Ribombee's wings did. "Twinkle Tackle!"

"Mudsdale, charge in!" Hapu ordered. Her horse shook its head, clearly still under the effects of the poison that was slowly draining away its strength, but charged in nonetheless. Kommo-o turned, ready to meet it head on.

"Block it with X-Scissor!" Ash called. Kommo-o crossed his arms, glowing bright purple as Mudsdale turned and attempted a Double Kick that was blocked by the attack, though both strained against one another. At the same time, Toucannon and Ribombee were charging at one another. While Toucannon was aiming for a more direct attack, dust billowing out from her fast-shooting speed, there seemed to be a stream of sparkles coming from the Bee Fly Pokémon that preceded its own quick advance. Toucannon impacted with that, and her body shuddered, but she pushed through until both Pokémon met head on.

"Pikapi...!" Pikachu cried out, and it was no surprise why. Wind blasted from the collision, even driving Mudsdale and Kommo-o apart. Toucannon and Ribombee fell away from each other, both looking tired from their exertion and collision of Z-Moves, but willing to move on. Ash swept his eyes along the battlefield; Kahili was wearing an impressed smirk, while Mina's eyes were wide, seeing the glittering stars left behind from her Z-Move, falling on to the field as it mixed with the dust from the Breakneck Blitz. Her eyes lit up with inspiration.

_I understand you now…_ he couldn't help but think to himself. He could see their movements, their patterns, their friendship and what they wanted to get out of the battle. It thrilled him, feeling that much closer to them.

It also meant that he could beat them.

"Toucannon, pick up Kommo-o, and let's go!" Ash cried out. Toucannon, recovering from the collision of Z-Moves, blasted forward, talons extended to pick up Kommo-o. If Ash's suspicions about Hapu's own Z-Moves were correct, then staying in the air would definitely be for the better.

"Heavy Slam!" Hapu ordered. Mudsdale started charging forward again, but Ash had already shifted to other plans.

"Get more altitude and use Flame Charge! Kommo-o, Poison Jab!" he roared out, bringing his fist slamming down. Toucannon spluttered to life with flame and blasted for the still recovering Ribombee. They were faster than Mudsdale, who was wincing with the poison in its system, managing to move out of the way of the charging Draft Horse Pokémon as they struck their target with their dual attack. Ribombee's body shuddered with flames, right as Kommo-o made a hook across it to strike with Poison Jab. Ribombee was sent careening for the ground; Ash didn't check to see if it was down. "Now, drop Kommo-o on Mudsdale!"

"What? !" Hapu asked in genuine surprise. Kahili laughed, and he wasn't surprised as to why; he was used to showing this kind of random strategy. Toucannon circled quickly and let go, just as Kommo-o landed on Mudsdale's back. "Shake it loose, quick!"

"Charge up with Beak Blast while they're distracted!" Ash ordered. He looked over to Serena. His girlfriend hadn't said anything the entire battle, watching with rapt fascination, but at that moment, she turned and grinned at him. He had it ready to win. Maybe there was not yet meaning in winning it, but at least he'd stepped a little closer, and he'd understood his opponents.

"High Horsepower!" Hapu commanded. Ribombee was still struggling to get up. Not that Mudsdale was doing much better, the poison making its movements sluggish. Still, it gave a tremendous kick backwards that jolted its body so much, Kommo-o began to fly off and upwards, unable to resist the action from its momentary fit of paralysis.

"Slam it with X-Scissor!" Ash called out. Kommo-o twisted in midair, soaring downward with crossed arms and a streaking purple light to slam into Mudsdale's back. It neighed in pain, shaking its head furiously. Toucannon's bright beak had reached its zenith now. "Let's finish this! Move in with Hyper Voice!"

"Counter with Heavy Slam!" Hapu called out. Mudsdale was sluggish, looking exhausted from the poison, but it still moved, charging forth to meet Toucannon head on. She soared right for it, her glowing red beak opening wide.

"CAAAAAANAAAAAH!" came the cry and the waves of sound fired outward. Usually red-orange in color, they were now blazing with the heat from her beak that battered Mudsdale relentlessly, even as Toucannon slammed right into its head, exploding with more fury than usual. The Heavy Slam also hit Toucannon, flinging her backwards where she rolled across the ground and struggled to get up.

"Now, Kommo-o, Clanging Scales!" Ash yelled, grinning with enthusiasm. Hapu's eyes narrowed, but she seemed to realize the problem. Her raised defenses wouldn't do anything against his next move.

"Kom kom!" Kommo-o called, skirting along the ground. He flinched a bit, shocks spreading through his body, but his scales nevertheless began to quiver violently. The sharp screeching sound they produced made Mudsdale buckle, and then they fired out, battering the horse with little remorse. Then a final one struck it on its head and exploded, pushing Mudsdale to where Ribombee was. The rest of the scales that were being fired all converged, piling upon in a great assault that only ended when a blast of fire from Ribombee's burn erupted, consuming the pair with a bright blaze before fading away. Kommo-o's attack ended, and he slumped. Kahili stepped forward to look at the battlefield.

"Mudsdale and Ribombee are unable to battle! The battle goes to the trial-goer, Ash!" she called, looking rather proud. Ash exhaled loudly; if he was honest, it hadn't felt like much of a Grand Trial battle, but he'd still had fun. More than that, he felt closer to his Pokémon and his opponents.

"Thanks, you guys," Ash said, running forward on to the battlefield.

"Kommo!" Kommo-o called, running forward. His tired state caused him to trip and bowled over right as Ash reached Toucannon. He collided with the both of them and they fell on to the ground, resulting in a tiny plume of dust. Ash had to laugh.

"Yeah, I know! You guys were both awesome, too!" Ash agreed, patting Toucannon on the back. Suddenly, he felt a bunch of berries dropped into his lap, and he looked up. Hapu was standing there, having taken the berries from her bag and depositing them onto him. "Ah, thanks."

"A fine battle. Most enjoyable I've had," Hapu stated gratefully as Kommo-o and Toucannon began to take part in the food that was there. Ash smiled up her, especially as she stretched her hand outward and dropped something. Ash reached for it and caught it, the small crystalline orb that signified clearing the Grand Trial. "I figured you didn't have much need of the crystal. But tell me, did you…?"

"Still don't know," Ash laughed out, though it wasn't like he found humor in it. "But…I think I figured something out…maybe? I don't know. Honestly, I just enjoyed the battle. It didn't mean anything, I think, but I…" Ash cut himself off. The battle hadn't meant anything. Did that mean it did nothing for his dream? Or was it that his dream meant nothing? He sunk into a question of himself.

"Well, I think it had some worthy inspiration. The collision of Breakneck Blitz against Twinkle Tackle is a sight I won't forget," Mina stated fondly, her gaze wandering off once again. Kahili appeared to realize this, because she smacked her on the back of the head without warning. At this point, Pikachu had rejoined him, with Serena smiling down with glimmering eyes. Ash reached forward, patting Kommo-o and Toucannon on the head.

"All right, guys! I cleared another Grand Trial!" he called out, holding the orb upwards. Pikachu led the others in cheering wildly while Serena clapped. Once their applause had finished, Ash looked to Mina, her eyes wavering between sharp and distracted. "So, that means I'll be taking this final trial of yours. It has the Totem Pokémon, right? Since you didn't use that and all…"

"More or less," Mina answered noncommittally. Ash would have dropped his mouth open, but decided to merely shrug and take whatever came, drawing himself to his feet. The artist's eyes seemed to trail off in the direction of the sheer canyon in the distance, making Ash guess that, perhaps, that was where the trial was to be held. Hapu picked up the thread from there.

"It does," she answered Ash, putting the attention back on her. "But it's more than that, and we can only hope that you manage to clear it."

"It's really a sink or swim as far as trials go," Kahili assured him, walking around to put her arms around both Mina and Hapu with a grin. "Not every trial-goer takes it. Usually they need the permission of the captain and Kahuna, and even then, a lot turn tail, just like Mina told you. But trust me…I think you need it, especially if you still can't answer old Hala's question."

"Sink or swim?" Serena asked, her voice sounding worried. Here, Kahili's face grew stern and serious. That made Ash just a little concerned, but no more than the words she spoke.

"If Ash doesn't complete the trial…he could very well die." It was such a serious statement that if it had come from anyone but Kahili, Ash would have considered it a joke. But she was the one who had said it, which meant it was to be taken at complete face value, and Ash knew deep down that no matter the danger, he would complete it. He  _needed_  to complete it. "Same for us, though. If we don't get the Moon Flute, we could lose all we hold dear. Now, Mina, cough up what you know. When we made our own positions all I was told to safeguard the secret was 'the moving palms'."

"I was told the 'ground surrounded by water'," Hapu stated, adding her own information to the mix. Ash was still thinking about the upcoming trial and the battle ahead, barely catching the snippets of what they were saying. His hand was shaking a little bit, thinking about Hala, Kahili, Hapu and all their questions and statements. He thought of Guzma, too. For a second, Ash closed his eyes until Serena reached forward and took his hand, just in time for him to catch the last phrase.

"All I remember being told was 'from the sands they could see the moon, above from where they could see the sun'," Mina said, though she didn't look all that interested; it really seemed more like an obligation to her than anything else. Kahili, on the other hand, slapped her forehead.

"Of course! Exeggutor Island," she said. "Makes sense. No one really goes there so it's overrun with Exeggutor that probably protect the Moon Flute. Hmm…without the lay of the land we'll need to go fully by boat and walking…"

"That doesn't matter! That's where we have to go, and quickly!" Serena assured the woman. Kahili nodded, as though it was all pretty obvious. So obvious, that she whipped around and began walking back towards the village again, only to freeze. It was a moment before she began speaking again without making any other body movement.

"Ash. I believe you can complete this trial," she said with full confidence. "You're a great trainer, and were a great student. I…I want to hear your answer to Hala's question. I want to see your dream be fulfilled for what it means to  _you_. I want to see who you decide you are."

"Who I decide I am…?" Ash asked, not quite getting what she meant. She refused to elaborate, however. Ash shook his head. "Thanks, Kahili, for everything. I'll definitely do it!"

"Mm. Serena, I'll give you a moment. I think it's best we tackle Exeggutor Island together, especially since no one is allowed in the trial site with Ash to begin with," Kahili informed her. Ash could feel Serena nodding, letting go of his hand. At the same time, Hapu appeared to be behind Mina, pushing her in what seemed to be the direction of the trial. With all that exchanged, Kahili began to walk off, giving off a rather striking presence. All of it led to Ash looking at Serena while Pikachu congratulated Kommo-o and Toucannon on their victory.

No words were said, but Serena reached forward, taking his face in her hands, now, and pressing her forehead to his. In the fading sunlight, she looked beautiful, and he held that image in his mind, wanting to not let go of it. Then she leaned forward, kissing his cheek. "I know you'll find your answer, just like Kahili does. Just remember: no giving in to despair."

"I know. You, too," he whispered to her. They pulled away, and Ash could see an answer for herself in her eyes. She had realized something. That gave him confidence. The two began to separate, hands ghosting away from each other yet again. And when they separated, they held on to each other's warmth despite the opposite directions. She went to join Kahili, and he and his Pokémon continued onward.

"Let's do this. Let's make our dreams reality."  _Whatever they might be._  Ash and his Pokémon walked forward unto their final trial.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So, we're getting very close now to the crux of the issue. Very, very close, though the answer is there for those who want to see it. Ash is finding no meaning in battling as it pertains to his dream. Not even the victory is beginning to mean anything! Serena seems to be having her own revelation and the battle is ready to burst with the Moon Flute's location discovered. Next up begins Ash's final trial (barring Hala, of course) and it is the very moment in the story I've been building towards…I hope it doesn't disappoint.
> 
> Now that we're reaching a pivotal moment in the trilogy, I ask that you all continue along with me until the end. So, until the next chapter, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	7. A Fog

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A reminder: I do change a little bit of geography for the story, but it's all to make it more dramatic! Also, if I'm late responding to you, fear not! I will respond…I'm just incredibly busy. That said, time for Chapter 7!

Chapter 7

A Fog

"So, hold on…let me get this straight, sulking twerp." James tapped his chin as their rather large quintet walked along at a rushed pace. They weren't running, mostly because Jessie would likely complain if they were to do that. What they  _were_  doing was following rapidly after the one they called the sulking twerp, Gladion or whatnot. Jessie was also talking. "You want to offer us a job?"

"If it gets you to shut up, sure," Gladion sighed out, clearly not wanting to deal with Jessie's antics any longer. If James was honest, he didn't want to deal with Jessie any longer today, either…it had been such a  _long_  day, so far. Gladion's Pokémon seemed to agree, moving on with naught but a growl.

"Well sorry, sulking twerp, but I have high aspirations!" Jessie proclaimed, taking the moment to pause and point out towards the sea. As if blessing her statement, the sea splashed water up and over the rocks, dousing them. That, she wasn't as happy about, especially when Wobbuffet hadn't anticipated the stop in movement and crashed into her.

"Dat's da highest her vocabulary has gone, too," Meowth said out of the corners of his mouth. Jessie didn't hear him, too busy shaking her head and now dripping hair. James wasn't sure what to make of all of it. In fact, he wasn't sure why the sulking twerp was truly offering them a job in the first place. It really felt like it was coming out of left field.

"Look, you people are clearly well versed in the criminal enterprises, and I'd rather not repeat the mistakes of my mother," Gladion snapped angrily, shoving his hands deep in his pockets as he continued to trek forward at a brisk pace. "Truth be told, though, knowing when bad things were about to happen wouldn't be a bad idea. Not if I want to rebuild Aether to what it used to be when my father was alive…"

"That's all well and good, sulking twerp, but what does that have to do with us?" James asked. Gladion stopped, like he was thinking about something, but wasn't about to exactly share what that was. However, his Pokémon moved on towards their ultimate destination of the canyon entrance as he heaved a sigh.

"Look, you either tell us, or whatever deal we'd make would be a bust," Meowth said, folding his arms. By this point, Jessie seemed to have recovered from her shrieking session.

"So, hurry up before we rust." James wanted to tell Jessie she'd made a good joke, considering she'd been doused by water. Of course, he also valued his life and managed to handily keep his mouth shut. Gladion breathed in one more time before turning to face all of them.

"I want to make the Aether Foundation into something great, which probably sounds silly," Gladion told them all, and for the first time, Jessie had managed to stay silent. "But there's a genuine darkness in Alola, caused by Team Skull…no, by the trial system, itself. That system is what allowed my mother to control all those people, is still allowing her to control them. It's the exact same kind of trap I fell into."

"And what kinda trap is dat?" Meowth asked, tapping his foot rather impatiently. James could understand, in some way, however; they didn't like being goody two-shoes like the twerps, but they didn't want to delay in taking down Team Skull, in order to stop them from letting the world be destroyed. That would be completely counter-productive to their own organization's plans…even if said organization's own ideas were getting a little tiring to James, himself.

"I let myself be controlled because I wanted to run away from the expectations that were forced on me, but it made me become just another tool, especially when I refused to work with anyone," Gladion's fists were now clenching tightly, James noticed. He was really in not that happy of a mood. "Honestly, I don't want to see anybody else go that way. So, I want to make the Aether Foundation different. I don't want them to feel like tools or worthless individuals, because I know what it feels like."

James watched the blond. Maybe it was because, in some sense, he understood being raised by a controlling family, that he could see the earnestness in Gladion's voice and plea. While James himself would never leave Team Rocket without Jessie and Meowth by his side, he also recognized when someone was doing a wonderful thing. Sure, his debt to Team Rocket was large, but at the same time, hearing Gladion's offer gave him this bizarre hope for a different life.

Or maybe it had been a growing hope ever since he'd been told to fight against former allies. Certainly, they were all moving on a different path. Not playing the role of perennial thieves actually allowed James to sleep at night, and Jessie seemed to have taken strides in her performance skills (if her performance in the Seafolk Ceremony was anything to go by). James couldn't lie and say that the thought of abandoning work for Team Rocket wasn't appealing in the slightest; it truly was, so long as they all had a sense of direction. Nevertheless, it wasn't something he'd commit to, either.

"I just want to make things better than they were," Gladion was saying. He was facing back in the direction of the sunset-lit canyon now. "Bringing criminals in and turning them honest…that would count, wouldn't it?"

"Why are you asking us?" Jessie asked dismissively. James sighed loudly; it was so like Jessie to throw those kinds of ideals back in someone's face. Gladion looked to survey her with a near offended expression, but didn't seem to say anything, either. The blue-haired man couldn't read what the boy was thinking. "Look, sulking twerp, we don't care about 'going honest'. Maybe those Skull bozos do, but we're not them! We're Team Rocket, and I'm going to be the Ali'i ka Leilani."

"If ya beat da twoipette," Meowth pointed out. Jessie just kicked at him, knocking him straight into Wobbuffet, who caught the feline without a problem.

"Point is, we're not someone that wants to hear your sob story, so if you want someone to turn legit, you'll have to try better than that!" At that particular proclamation, the magenta haired woman stuck her nose into the air and began stalking off, leading their own little quartet right past Gladion and straight for the entrance to the canyon (they even ignored the rather proud Silvally). James quickly scrambled in order to keep up with her, putting a hand to his pokeballs to make sure they were secure. He wanted Inkay and Crabrawler to be rested up for the fight ahead (and his head, as well, but that was beside the point). Meowth and Wobbuffet quickly took the rear as well. They quickly caught up to Jessie, and fell in stride with her.

"I'm surprised, Jess. Dat was almost kind of you," Meowth said with a little smirk. To that, Jessie scoffed loudly. James watched her a moment and then looked to Meowth with a smile. Their poisonous little flower seemed to have finally lost some thorns, though she was still painful enough.

"I don't have a problem with him making people go legit, but we still have a mission. I don't have time to think about what life will be like after this whole mess and the Hope Leilani," she said in a muttered breath. It was about the best to expect out of Jessie, James knew; she never was quite sunshine and rainbows except for under rare circumstances.

"And how! We'll focus on this for now!" he agreed, giving a thumbs up to his female companion. She obviously accepted his sentiments about supporting her in her quest to become the Ali'i ka Leilani, even blushing just a little, but she inevitably turned away in order to seem entirely unaffected. A sudden grumble sounded out as Meowth nearly pitched forward. Wobbuffet picked him up and placed him atop his head.

"If only we had some chow…" Meowth muttered. Suddenly, he found something being tossed to him that looked like a berry. Gladion had caught up from where they'd left him standing, having given over a Sitrus Berry upon his arrival. Meowth and Wobbuffet ate theirs with relative ease while Gladion simply brushed past the group, once more. James had to admit that he was a little hungry, as well, but he tried to ignore that fact.

"Hurry it up!" the blond snapped backwards. That seemed to be more like it in general for their group, because Jessie adopted a scowl on her face and went storming after him, leaving the other three males to play a very quick game of catch-up.

In no time at all, they seemed to have reached the entrance to the canyon, looking immensely dark in the near nighttime. Jessie stopped outside it, almost gulping with some sense of either anticipation or fear (James wasn't sure which and didn't want to presume). Gladion, on the other hand, chose to have no fear, and plunged right into the darkening walls of the canyon. All of Team Rocket looked around at one another.

"So…uh…guess we're going in?" Jessie said with a nervous chuckle, confirming the emotion she was experiencing.

"More dan dat, we're gonna win!" Meowth said, leaping off of Wobbuffet and standing between Jessie and James. "We're Team Rocket, and we got our mission ta do!"

"Then we can report to the boss when all this is over and move on!" James cheered. Jessie and Meowth actually seemed to like this idea, for the both of them cheered wildly, pitching their hands into the air. "Team Rocket forever!"

Their small pact made, they plunged into the darkness after Gladion. Just before the sun vanished from the high walls of the canyon entirely, James turned back and noticed one side of the walls glittering, like it was wet from the pools that sat near them. It reminded him of their visit to the ruins a little less than a month ago, but he passed it off to follow after the others. Despite the darkness, they could still see well enough inside of the canyon, navigating their way through its narrow passages carefully. Low hanging roots nearly brushed them aside and small crannies were approachable.

There were also two separate paths, they soon found out. One that seemed to go straight ahead, towards what was their likely destination, and another that traveled upwards and around, though it appeared to take longer. Their group stopped there and Jessie tossed out Gourgeist's pokeball. James did the same for Inkay. While his own wasn't able to cast nearly as much light on the area as Jessie and Gourgeist, it was still something for them to see the surrounding canyon walls. Not that it helped to inform them of their decision.

"So, which way do we go?" Jessie asked, like the question was really obvious.

"If there were berries, I could have Crabrawler find a good way, but…" James folded his arms in consideration. As he did so, Gladion was walking to one of the walls and he placed his hand upon it.

"Damp…" Gladion said carefully, running his hand along the stony surface. "I feel like there was water passing along this rock."

"So? What does dat mean?" Meowth asked. Like usual, Gladion refused to answer, continuing along with his hand until he started stepping up the path that led around the canyon in a longer fashion. James was still confused, and probably the only one of his group that cared for why the wall had been wet, given Jessie's rather bored expression.

"We go this way!" Gladion announced sharply and, despite grumblings, they obeyed. The quintet quickly made their way up the large slope, to the path that seemed to cross over safely and wrap around the lower canyon path. Gladion kept his hand on the wall, feeling for their path. Around the time their initial path seemed to vanish, he began to explain his reasoning, placing his free hand upon Silvally's head. "I don't know why water would be traveling horizontally along the wall, but I'd have to imagine it has something to do with our comrades. It can't have been too long ago, either, if the wall is only damp, but I'd imagine it dries quickly if it's from the Tapu."

"Creepy water," Jessie said, giving another shudder as she did so. James agreed, but said nothing more. They just continued on, Gourgeist and Inkay continuing to light the area. Soon, the path began to slope downward once more, though James felt as if they'd certainly been traveling for a very long time; likely hours, but without a watch he had no true idea.

"Hrrrr…" Silvally growled as their feet once more touched level to the original path. It was looking back, growling angrily, and the air seemed to draw closer. For whatever reason, James thought he could sense danger down that pathway. It really just encouraged him to move on all the more.

"Prepare for trouble, it's chilly in here…" Jessie remarked, putting her arms around herself and rubbing them. James continued, more out of compulsion than any real desire to.

"And make it double, it's scary with fear…" he agreed. Gladion appeared to roll his eyes, but they continued on with the motto, even as their feet continued moving forward, mostly because it gave them a true sense of comfort.

"To protect the world from that icky Team Skull."

"To unite all people, the brave and the dull."

"To denounce the evils of working with twerps."

"To extend our abilities and lock up the perps!"

"Jessie!" Jessie cried, not stopping to pause but removing her hands from her arms with confidence.

"And James!" he agreed. They had picked up their pace now, in both motto and footsteps, past a nearly exasperated Gladion.

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, we're putting up a very good fight!"

"Dat's right!" Meowth chimed in, with Wobbuffet following soon after. They felt a little wind blow through the area, as if telling them that their entire exchange right then had gone completely unnoticed by anyone. Though, that didn't prove to quite be the case.

"Your stupid mottos are as dumb as ever," said a chiding voice. James dropped his mouth as Gladion and Silvally bustled past. Gourgeist did the same as their surly companion, shining light upon the area. In seconds, Jessie screamed and fell back against Wobbuffet. James was more controlled, though he was still surprised to see a whole gaggle of twerps right in front of him. Sure enough, it was the mini-twerpette that had said something.

"I don't know. Their lyrical rhyming was pretty cool," Hau stated, throwing his hands behind his head. James grinned at that, but the grin dropped off when he saw the other man, Lionel, staring at them with a frown, before sighing.

"They were also as loud as could be. If Team Skull didn't know we were coming before, they know now," the man said. Jessie looked about to argue back, stepping forward and everything, but James grabbed ahold of her. Gladion took the lead for their group.

"I wouldn't be surprised if they knew we were coming before we even set foot in the canyon," he said before glancing over to Lillie. Said blonde nodded at him, though the sibling pair didn't exchange words. Instead, the science twerp stepped forward.

"Did you find him, then?" the boy asked. However, there was something off. He seemed more solemn and serious, like he was genuinely worried about something. Gladion now took his turn to nod.

"Serena and Kahili are with him…somewhere. He plans on taking the final trial, though Kahili has assured me that it shouldn't interfere with our assault, so don't worry," Gladion said. It was obvious that was more for the benefit of Lionel than anyone else, because the man frowned and turned away, towards the source of their destination. Though, even if he was doing that, James was more concerned for what lay behind them, and that feeling of foreboding. He almost wondered if it contributed to the science twerp's expression. "They're probably getting the Moon Flute."

"Then we can reunite soon!" Bonnie cheered happily. "That'll be good, right, Clemont? Clemont?"

"Mm, yeah," Clemont said, though he sounded distracted; a tone that accompanied his look. He walked a little forward, or rather, back in the direction they had all come. Each of those present looked at him, finding his attitude strange. It soon proved far less strange when the twerp's Greninja was by his side, staring into the abyss of darkness that was the route they had avoided.

"Ninja," it said with a nod. Before the two could do anything, Lionel's voice echoed out.

"Come on, no more time to waste! They'll get here when we need them!" Clemont frowned but turned away, very slowly. Jessie, Meowth and Gladion were already moving to catch up with the front of the line, but Clemont and Greninja stayed behind with James. Like on instinct, knowing the smart twerp had felt the same thing he did, he pressed his pokeball, calling out Crabrawler, who latched on his head.

"You too, huh?" Clemont muttered, like it offered confirmation. James wasn't sure what to say, especially when Clemont stopped his forward movement. "James…go with the others and…I know it'll sound weird but, make sure they're all safe."

"What're you-?" James began to question, but he couldn't finish in time. Instead, without any further warning, he watched Clemont whip around and disappear back into the darkness, Greninja running at his side. Then, James shook his head and moved onward to the site of their upcoming battle as Crabrawler clicked his claws menacingly. They were ready to fulfill their mission.

* * *

Sunset continued to encroach upon the shores of Poni Island, making the canyon look almost reddish-brown now that it was nearly below the horizon. Stars could be seen poking out from under the hood of night, their little glimmering lights casting a celestial and ethereal glow upon the wilderness. Ash stopped a moment, staring up at them. He hadn't told anyone, but over the last month, he had been watching the movements of the night sky whenever he and Kahili had a break.

The Day of Stars was most definitely drawing closer at this point.

It impressed upon him a definite need to complete this trial and return to his friends for their battle. In the sky, the stars were drawing together, starting to overlap with one another. In just a few days they'd all be together, and the celestial energy would come forth to open the portals to the Ultra Space, unless they stopped it first. Or something like that. Ash knew he wasn't the most knowledgeable when it came down to all the details in the first place. Usually, that was just fine with him.

"Come, it's this way," Hapu's voice echoed across the wilderness, still dragging Mina with her. The blonde woman still looked slightly spaced out, but nevertheless held enough sharpness to attempt slapping at her friend's hand. It was usually in vain. Ash just followed after the pair, Toucannon and Kommo-o at his side, and Pikachu on his shoulder.

"Poni Island is pretty small, huh, guys?" he asked with a laugh. They seemed to have cleared most of it in so short a time already, even if they'd been power walking as opposed to lazily strolling. Pikachu agreed with a little nod before giving a yawn. Now that he thought of it, he'd been going about forty-eight hours at this point without little more than a small nap and some berries for sustenance. He almost wanted to join his best friend in yawning loudly, but prevented himself from doing so.

"Poni seems like the smallest of the four major islands, even if it's not. Lots of nature so there's nothing to circumvent or anything, like a city," Mina explained, though it seemed like she mostly did so because she didn't have anything better to do, rather than out of a desire to inform. "That's why we barely have any visitors unless it's for the pilgrimage or something like that. Gives me lots of time for art, and I've already thought of my next piece."

"Think about it on your own time, yes?" Hapu asked of her, gloved hands gripping tighter around the paint-splotched shirt. Clearly, Mina was a force to be reckoned with when it came to her artwork, and it was almost a wonder that the three were friends at all.

_Then again, me, Serena and Clemont probably look pretty mismatched, too_ , Ash thought to himself, and it offered him a rather light chuckle that he then shrugged off. They were pretty close to the canyon wall now, though Ash couldn't see exactly why they'd come here, so far away from where the actual canyon was enterable; where Gladion and Team Rocket had headed towards. Finally, though, they managed to bring themselves to a stop right in front of the expansive wall, and Hapu let go of Mina. The woman dropped to the ground and blinked.

"Oh, we're here?" she asked, showing just how relatively out of it she was. "Sorry, I was just watching the ocean. I'd love to get that color just right, but it's proving difficult even on the best of days…oh…and it looks like there's some rain out at sea."

"She's not always with it, is she?" Ash laughed out, rubbing the back of his head. Hapu shrugged in reply, shaking her head. She bent down, hoisting Mina by the shirt and making sure she wasn't going to fall down again after not paying attention yet another time. She didn't, thankfully. "So…uh…how exactly do we get in, then? Because I only see a wall."

"Ah, right…I have it sealed," Mina said. The woman reached into her relatively ragged pants (a fact that Ash had only just noticed) and took out the familiar looking pendants that belonged to all of the trial captains. It glowed in the faint light, showing the composition of the Z-Crystals inside. She walked up to the canyon wall and felt along it, like she was looking for where exactly the area was sealed. "This trial is so important that I have to keep it safe, big-time."

"Why is it so important? I mean, Kahili has constantly called it the 'last trial' but if Mina is the trial captain, why isn't it always held here?" Ash asked. On his shoulder, Pikachu was nodding with a little "Pi" at every statement. Hapu breathed in and turned to Ash, looking at him with the most serious expression he was certain that he'd ever seen her adorn.

"It is called the 'last trial' because of how vastly different it is, and how rarely we open it to challengers," Hapu instructed. Mina was still feeling along the wall, like she'd lost its placement long ago. "It is such an ancient path, presumably the first trial created centuries ago, maybe even millennia, that we are forced to not open it but for those who are deemed worthy. It is the reason I gave you your Grand Trial first, as I do all challengers of this trial…though very few choose to take it. In any case, like the location of the Moon Flute as an ancient relic, its knowledge is only passed down amongst Kahunas, and from a Kahuna to captain. Rarely is it shared with anyone else, but Kahili, as an Island Champion, was a different case."

"So, it's not Mina's trial, then?" Ash asked, trying to make sure that he got all the facts straight and understood them perfectly. Mina was the one to answer that particular inquiry.

"Not at all," she answered, taking her hand off the wall and pouting. It might have just been thinking, though, Ash realized. "For my trial, I typically just battle the trial-goer and I'm done with it. That way the Pilgrimage isn't seen as  _too_  dangerous. Not to mention, Hapu hasn't been around for some time."

"Or you would just like to focus on your compositions," Hapu pointed out. Mina nodded, conceding the point, apparently. Ash found it somewhat amusing, but didn't really think now was the time to discuss Mina's art. Hapu didn't think so, either, it seemed. "You need the permission of both the Kahuna and the captain to enter this trial and its most hallowed ground. It's an area of the canyon that none can tread without that permission, it is so connected with our great Tapu's sanctity."

"I see," Ash commented. Like most Alolans, they all held a remarkably great reverence for their guardian deities and the hallowed lands that they set. Ash breathed in. He had to be ready for this. "Okay, so, what's the goal?"

"Ah, stay your hand, Ash," Hapu stated, sounding suddenly formal as she held her own hand up. At last, Mina seemed to snap her fingers, like she remembered just where she'd left the entrance to the site. She continued along the canyon's outer wall. "As Kahili said, this trial is not for the faint of heart, and nor is it for those who will give up along the way, or lose themselves."

_Lose myself…_ Ash closed his eyes. He could remember Guzma's words as the man had pinned both himself and Gladion against the bookshelves. He heard the man's voice mocking him in his head.  _Ya don't even know yerselves, so how could ya ever know another person?_

"If you enter, you will not leave until you succeed…or die." It sounded remarkably dangerous for someone to put a child through, no matter what, though when Ash realized it was the Kahunas that chose for the trial-goers to enter, it made sense that they would only pick those they knew could make it out alive. Ash looked to his Pokémon, grinning at them with confidence. That they were allowing him to do this at all meant they held great confidence in him and his abilities.

"Not a problem! Me and my team don't know the meaning of giving up!" Ash stated, pumping his fist powerfully to prove his point. Hapu chuckled, nodding her head, though the laughter soon faded from her lips as she stared at him calmly.

"This will be unlike any trial you've faced thus far, I warn you. There is a maze of branches and stone that you will find yourself in. When you've completed your task, you may leave, of course, but not until then. Thankfully, there is a connected path to the Altar of the Sunne, so you can head to that point as soon as you've finished it…though, I don't know if I can guarantee…"

"We'll do it!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu agreed. He wasn't the only one. Both Toucannon and Kommo-o were adamant about completing it all, as well. At the very least, it made more sense why they felt it was important to do this now: there would be a path for him to get to everyone as quickly as possible.

"Found it!" Mina called out, quite a few feet away. She stepped forward and placed her captain's pendant to the sheer rock wall. Ash ran over, Hapu traveling at a more leisurely pace behind him. His eyes widened as, all of a sudden, that huge chunk of rock suddenly disappeared into thin air, as though it were never there. Seconds later, the blue layer of barrier underneath also faded. Ash could now draw close enough to look inside. It was dark, likely thanks to the sinking sun…and it looked obscured, like there was a deep mist inside the cavern. "Well, you ready, then?"

"For sure! What's the task?" Ash asked, looking between both Hapu and Mina. The two women looked at each other and then chose to answer with what he had been waiting for the whole time.

"Find and defeat the Totem Pokémon, if you can. Otherwise, just obtain the Z-Crystal that's within," was Mina's answer, shrugging, like the concept itself wasn't hard to understand. He had to agree with that. Alongside his friends and team members, there was nothing they couldn't do.

"You'll need your entire team out, too," Hapu informed him, eyes crinkling a little. Ash nodded in understanding. "After all, this is as much about them as it is you. We'll see you at the Altar when you're done; I plan to drag Mina to meet up with Kahili and Serena upon their return so we can get through the canyon the normal way."

"Got it! Pikachu, Toucannon, Kommo-o, let's get going," he said with a grin. He faced his body inward, towards the ever-swirling mist inside the darkening canyon walls. He took a step forward, but once more, Hapu's voice called him back with a final warning.

"Ash, don't lose yourself in the canyon.  _Find_  yourself," she insisted. "And…whatever you do, don't let yourself give in. Despair exists for many, but hope can exist for all. Be sure to remember that."

Unsure of what she meant or was saying, Ash just offered a nod, striding forward to the depths of the canyon. As he did so, he opened his remaining three pokeballs, with Decidueye, Lycanroc and Passimian appearing by his side. All seemed to understand the situation with fierce expressions on their faces. He swallowed once more and proceeded into the canyon, his foot making an echoing sound on the rock that was there. The second it did so, Ash turned and saw the wall behind him suddenly seal itself up. The only thing he caught a glimpse of was Hapu grabbing Mina again and dragging her off before it was all cloaked in darkness.

There was no sound. No light. They could still see, the shining light of the moon and stars illuminating the twisting labyrinthine maze that was the Vast Poni Canyon. However, they were completely cut off from the outside world. The only sound that was returned to him was that of his own breathing, and that of his Pokémon next to him. They were alone.

"Let's go," he said quietly. He didn't know exactly where to go to find the Totem Pokémon or the Z-Crystal, but he did have some idea as he continued into the mist. Pikachu stuck to his shoulder while Decidueye moved ahead, turning this way and that. A slight rumbling filled the air, though it appeared to be more from his faithful Grass type's stomach. Ash had to smile at the shared feeling. "No worries. We'll finish this and get some good food, yeah?"

"Deci…" Decidueye hissed out from the hunger, but agreed. Ash reached up and patted him on the back.

"Why don't you scout ahead and see what you can discover? Toucannon, can you fly above the canyon, maybe? That way we can at least get our bearings," Ash pointed out. Both of his previous fliers agreed wholeheartedly. Decidueye rushed off into the mist while Toucannon flapped upward. Ash watched them go, remaining in his spot as he began thinking of Hapu's words. How would finding a Totem Pokémon or a Z-Crystal help him with his answers, if it was what he had already been doing during his time in Alola? What would even finding himself do? It made no sense, but he figured it was best to wait until he was finally able to find the thing in the first place before pondering those questions.

He waited, breathing in. Next to him, Lycanroc's fur bristled as she barked a little, not liking the air of the place. Kommo-o seemed remarkably on edge as well, as though sensing a power far greater than himself inside the canyon. Ash turned, but still heard nothing.

"Pikapi…chupika…" Pikachu said worriedly. Ash was starting to worry, too. Neither of his Pokémon had returned, like they had been gobbled by the mist that was surrounding them fully.

"Decidueye! Toucannon!" he called out. There was no answer in response, and Ash had to force himself to breathe. There was no good in panicking now. He walked forward in the direction that Decidueye had gone, but still heard nothing and saw nothing, the heavy mist clinging to his skin and clothes. "Lycanroc, can you sniff them out?"

"Lyc!" Lycanroc barked and she sniffed at the air before running forward. Ash followed her, plunging deeper into the dark of the canyon. Lycanroc kept barking, leading them along, yet with each successive one, it quietened until there was nothing left.

"Lycanroc…?" Ash asked, his voice cracking with worry for just a moment.

"Pikapi! Chuchu!" Pikachu cried. Ash looked to his steadfast partner and saw him pointing behind him. Ash turned around. Kommo-o seemed to be gone as well. What was going on? Had the mist claimed them? Or was it the Totem Pokémon?

_Don't lose yourself…_ Was this what she meant? Was he to lose all of his Pokémon to the swirling mist? It had sounded so metaphorical, not literal, but now Ash was rethinking that. "Passimian, do you know where he went?"

"Passi…" Passimian indicated his ignorance with a shake of his head. Ash felt his heart clench with worry, wondering where a good two-thirds of his team had gone. He knew he could find them, though. He  _had_  to find them.

"Come on," he breathed out, stepping back in to the mist. He could barely see anything around him, especially when Passimian came closer to him, moving in front. The mist grew thicker, enveloping them and threatening to consume them. Ash felt sweaty and sticky, his mouth growing thirsty thanks to the air. Suddenly, a canyon wall appeared right before him and he slammed into it without knowing. "Gah!"

"Chupi…" Pikachu said, shaking his head. Ash wanted to glare at him, tell him it wasn't his fault, but stopped when he could no longer see Passimian, either. He closed his eyes, gritting his teeth. This couldn't be happening. Not now. He almost felt a sense of panic coming on, but he kept it down.

"Guess it's just us, for now…" Ash said. Pikachu nodded, and the two continued on. Ash cupped his hands around his mouth after walking for a minute or two without any sign of his other Pokémon. "Decidueye! Kommo-o! Passimian! Lycanroc! Toucannon!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu also called out. There was no response. Nothing but their own voices echoing back at them. Ash's arms slumped with a sigh, but he continued onward. Overhead, the stars would occasionally be veiled by the mist, or otherwise obscured by some kind of large branch that covered up the top of the canyon. Ash turned back and forth, unable to find which way to go, especially with the maddening mist.

He stopped a moment to regain his breath and looked up. There seemed to be a brighter spot where there was no mist up ahead. Maybe that was where the others were! He ran forward, though thanks to the mist, he didn't see the root that caught on his foot and caused him to trip. He pitched forward, tumbling along the ground and slamming into another canyon wall. Rubbing his head from the collision, Ash looked up. There was no more mist.

"Guys?" he asked, whipping around, hoping to see the rest of his team there. But they weren't. Looking to his shoulder, Ash suddenly noticed that even Pikachu was gone, having vanished entirely. He swallowed. "Everyone!"

His voice seemed to vanish into nothingness. No Pikachu. No Decidueye. No Lycanroc. No Toucannon. No Passimian. No Kommo-o. He was completely and utterly alone. It was getting cold, too. Glancing to the side, he saw a straight path leading forward, almost like it was guiding him somewhere, maybe. He breathed in. "I'll find you."

Then he walked on, alone, into the depths of the canyon.

* * *

"That the place, Miss Kahili?" the driver of the boat called. Serena looked up. Even under the night sky, it was easy to see the island they were now swiftly approaching at top speeds across the water. Like Kahili's clue had said, the area was populated by tall and thriving palm trees, swaying in the wind. Actually, they were some  _extremely_  tall palm trees, the size of which she had never seen before.

"That's the one," Kahili confirmed loudly, speaking over the sound of the churning waves down below. Serena turned to look at her; for being the woman that had been training Ash the last month, Serena knew surprisingly little about her, now that she really thought about it. Not that it was necessarily a bad thing, but certainly something strange. Seeing her now, though, Serena felt she could understand just why Ash had chosen this particular woman to train with. She cut a rather striking figure, and from that brief battle at Ten Carat Hill, Serena knew just how powerful she truly was. The match against Hapu and Mina had proven that Ash had grown tremendously under her tutelage. "Serena, are you ready?"

"Huh?" Serena said, the words tumbling from her mouth in surprise. She'd been so lost in her own thoughts that she hadn't realized the golfer was looking to her with a rather expectant expression upon her face. "Oh. Yes, yes."

"Right…we shouldn't be too long, so just hold for us," Kahili said to the driver. He nodded in turn, throwing a brief glance back towards Poni Island. Serena couldn't help but do so, too, thinking of everyone that was gathering on that small location. She wondered how Lillie and Clemont were doing, and if Gladion and Team Rocket had joined up with them yet. Hopefully that group would remain safe until they could get there and the battle would begin, Serena couldn't help but think. More than that, she hoped that Ash would be okay during whatever his trial would be. "Hey, get with it."

"Sorry, just thinking," Serena apologized quickly. She finally looked up at Kahili, who was observing her with a light frown, but didn't say much more. Deciding to not let anything but their upcoming goal distract her, Serena turned her attention toward the island they were now slowing their approach to. Now closer than they were before, Serena could see how quaint the island looked with its tall, rustling palms. There appeared to be some rocks around the edges, and it seemed that parts of the island were far too high to reach from the shore. Glancing along it, Serena noticed some small nooks that could be used to shelter from the rain, particularly when she could smell some rain moving in on the ocean air. At the very top of the small island, though, surrounded by the rocks and tiny mountains, was a bright, celestial glow. It was almost like the moon's light was gravitating towards that one spot…sort of.

"All right, here we are! You gals be safe," the driver said, stalling the engine. Kahili nodded her gratitude and walked over to the most level piece of ground she could find before pitching herself over the side of the boat. Serena followed, using her usual performing skills to quickly fling herself over to Kahili's side. Both of them turned in the direction of the glow, through the writhing maze of palm trees.

"Hey, I know we haven't really worked together before, and we certainly don't know each other very well," Kahili began, prompting Serena to put her attention there, "but we're sharing a unified purpose, right? So…"

"I have no problem working with you," Serena insisted, offering her a smile. "You trained Ash and are good friends with him by now, almost like a big sister type, so I have something to be grateful for. We're on the same side!"

"Good to hear it. Just don't want anything to slow us down very much, you know?" Kahili laughed out, looking a little flattered. Serena nodded her head, completely understanding where the woman was coming from. Finally, Kahili punched a fist into her open palm. It reminded her so much of Ash, and Serena wondered if, perhaps, Kahili had taken away just as much as she'd given. Serena closed her eyes, that sparkling revelation resting behind them for a moment; now wasn't quite the time for it.

"All right," Serena said, and she and Kahili took a step forward in tandem with one another. Under the night sky, everything seemed so peaceful on the island, nothing but the sound of palms as they stepped to the side and walked forward. Kahili took the lead and seemed to find a straight-shooting path that would lead to their ultimate destination. Her head jerked towards Serena, as though telling her that this was the way they needed to move. The Performer nodded and kept close, walking through. Only…it was no longer a straight shot. Their path was blocked.

"Well, that's wei…ah, crap," Kahili cursed under her breath. Serena now walked up to her side, looking at the woman and the look of realization on her face. "That was so stupid of me… _Exeggutor_  Island."

"Yeah, but aren't Exeggutor really fat palm trees?" Serena said. Not that she meant to insult them by calling them fat, but they always seemed to have a rather large girth. They were certainly much larger around the middle than these skinny trees were. She looked up at them while Kahili began to shake her head. The palm trees were all remarkably tall, stretching well into the sky. Yet, the longer that she stared, the more she thought she heard something  _other than_ the swaying leaves.

"Tor…tor…TOR!" Serena's eyes snapped wide, and in a second, she'd leapt to the side. Kahili had jumped with her. Just after they did, a large green hammer slammed into that spot, and when it emerged, Serena could swear she saw a tail with a face on the end.

"In Alola, they're skinny…and super tall…and Dragon types," Kahili said, practically berating herself for forgetting such a simple fact. Serena wasn't angry at it either way, gripping at her pokeballs. It was clear that the Exeggutor were moving to prevent them from reaching their ultimate goal, and saying "please" nicely wasn't going to let them through, no matter how much easier and nicer it would have been.

"Braixen! Primarina!" Serena cried out, tossing both of her pokeballs into the air. They appeared in flashes of light while Kahili called her Toucannon out, like usual. "Flamethrower and Disarming Voice!"

"Primaaaaaaa!" Primarina began. From her loud voice, the heart shaped soundwaves flew out. As they did so, they grew larger and larger, soon encompassing the entire area. The palm trees shook…and then they stamped. From the ground, suddenly emerged legs and tails. From above came the tops of the palms, each with the egg faces that rested on them.

"Bullet Seed, hit them in the face," Kahili said testily. Toucannon cried out and began to spit the seeds out like a practical Gatling gun. They slammed right into the Exeggutor's faces, causing them to rear back. Their tails came flying out with the intent to slam and Braixen was moving. Her Flamethrower fired out, and the force of the flames pushed the tails back, enough for Serena to get a glimpse of the path beyond them. It looked like a narrow path, certainly not enough for the Exeggutor to follow them on.

"I should have realized the obviousness of why someone would place the Moon Flute in such an easy-to-figure-out place…" Kahili said, still beating herself up over the mistake.

"It's fine! We just need to get past them and I think we'll be okay. If we make it to that ledge!" Serena yelled out to her. Kahili whipped around and raised her eyebrows, seeing the path. Then she grinned.

"Seems perfect to me. Mind obscuring their vision? Toucannon can guide us there," Kahili said. Toucannon broke off his attack and soared upwards, clearly to get a better glimpse of the shifting maze that the Exeggutor were making. Serena threw her hand out, ready to command her brave Pokémon.

"Primarina, Sparkling Aria, and Braixen, hit it with Fire Blast," she called out. Primarina reared back, forming the globes of water that she then shot forward. Braixen followed suit, sending out the star of flame that joined with the water. It exploded, covering their group and the Exeggutor in thick steam.

"Canah!" Toucannon cried in a gruff voice and Kahili and Serena joined hands so as to not lose track of one another. They followed the sound of Toucannon, who would occasionally dip low to show them where he was. The Exeggutor were in a near confused frenzy, unable to find the intruders to their island. That was perfectly fine with Serena, who stuck close to Kahili until they reached that narrow path that led upwards. One of the Exeggutor was in pursuit, flinging its glowing green tail at them.

"Psyshock," Serena called back. Braixen sent the rippling streams of purple out at Exeggutor just as Toucannon also nailed it from above with Brave Bird. The palm-looking Pokémon stumbled back, allowing the island's visitors to continue on. Serena kept running, though she slowed down and turned to Primarina as Toucannon floated back down. "Primarina, could you…?"

Her loyal Pokémon nodded, raising her flippers and forming an orb of water that she sent high. It broke up into a soft rain with the separation of Primarina's flippers, and Toucannon flapped his wings, glowing green as he looked more chipper. Kahili blinked and commented on it as she returned her partner. "Huh, never seen a Sparkling Aria used like  _that_  before."

"It's something we worked on over the last month," Serena commented, also returning her Pokémon. "It would usually only heal burns, but would also hurt the target, so we worked on finding a way to negate that. What we came up with instead gives back a little endurance to the target, enough to feel like wounds are healed, but it's only temporary. It's not like Primarina can use it on herself, either."

"Either way, seems handy," Kahili noted. Serena nodded a bit. "Makes sense, too, given that burns reduce endurance. Using a secondary property is nice…you really  _are_  his girlfriend, aren't you?"

"Thanks," Serena chuckled out with a slight dusting of pink on her cheeks. She didn't say any more, though, both of them turning their attentions to what was ahead. The path sloped upward in a near spiraling fashion to their ultimate goal, but Kahili stopped at the sudden feel of rain falling on their skin. Her gaze snapped to the clouds.

"Shouldn't last long…" the Island Champion muttered out before dragging Serena up and over to one of the small caves. Just as they got inside, the rain began to come down swiftly and in sheets. "I know we have no time to delay, but getting sick from the rain would be a bad idea. Trade winds make it all pass through pretty quickly around here, anyway. Just a few minutes."

"Right…" Serena remarked, unsure what else to say to that. She certainly didn't want to burden herself by soaking in the rain. Silence fell between the two of them, with Kahili tapping her foot a little. The honey blonde snuck a look at her, seeing her as pensive, staring out at the rain. She wondered if the woman was thinking about Ash, and whether he would end up succeeding. Before she could really think of asking, though, Kahili took her moment to speak.

"How do you persevere?" she asked. Serena was taken aback by the question, mostly because it came out of nowhere, and she wasn't entirely sure what kind of answer Kahili was looking for in asking it. Thankfully, the woman elaborated. "Life can't have been easy. Ash told me what you've been through, all of you. Yet every day you all make this decision to move forward."

"Because we have to, right?" Serena said. She placed her hands behind her back and continued to stare out into the rain. "There's really no option about it. We have our dreams, and if we give up on them now, then all those people who sacrificed for us, and even all those who couldn't obtain their dreams…it would be meaningless. That's why we have to move forward. At least, it's what I believe. What about you, though? Hapu mentioned that you had taken this same trial as Ash, so…"

"I did," Kahili commented. She leaned back, placing her head against the wall of the small cave as she stared out. "Hard to believe now, of course…but I was at a pretty low point. I was strong with Toucannon, no doubt about it…but I was arrogant. I breezed through the trials like they were nothing, never losing once. I practically demanded to do that final trial…such an idiot, stepping all over tradition like that."

"So, what happened?" Serena asked, interested in Kahili's story now. The woman sighed.

"I lost my Pokémon in the mist and soon found out…I was nothing without them. I praised myself as such a skilled trainer, but being there, without a single Pokémon by my side, I broke down and began to cry. It's still as vivid as the day I did it," she elaborated. "In the end, I accepted that I was just a small piece of something much bigger, and my skills were really nothing significant. That's how I was able to complete the trial."

"Sounds very philosophical," Serena chuckled out. Kahili didn't give a response to that at first, allowing Serena a moment to continue onward. "I feel like a lot of the Alolans are, with all of the questions you ask. You, Hapu, Hala…"

"I suppose…it's because of our strong ties to nature and working with Pokémon in that way. I was oblivious to it in my youth, so focused on the game and winning and all that, but since then, I've come to understand the beauty of it," Kahili said. She stopped leaning and stood up, reaching a hand out to feel the rain splashing upon it, though it had lessened. "And that's the point of the trials: to become one with nature, in a sense. Those who truly complete the trials don't just complete a series of tasks to enter some vaunted hall. They enter them to become attuned to nature, others and oneself. If you cannot manage that, how can you ever be a true Pokémon trainer."

"But Ash…" Serena wasn't sure exactly what she wanted to say in reference to her boyfriend. That he  _was_  one with nature? Sure, he was. Ash loved Pokémon, understood how they worked and wanted them to get along better. Being in tune with others was something he had definitely come far in, as well. He knew, usually, when she was feeling low, or about his Pokémon or Clemont. But then…with himself…

"Ash is someone strong, yet he holds humility. He's a far cry from what I was at his age, but he's still dealing with his own problems." Serena couldn't disagree with all of that, but she had no words to spare on the subject. "Like me, he's won the trials handily, as far as I understand, but it's clear that he hasn't seen the point in them anymore…how do they push him? Or maybe…what does it all mean? Ash has striven for his dream for so long that now, he no longer knows what that dream is. How does he define it? No amount of training with me could answer that question, because it's something for himself, and himself, alone."

"Defining your dream, huh…?" Serena breathed out. She took a moment, and then continued. "At first, I never knew if I had a dream, but eventually I decided on one: making people happy. I knew what I wanted, which is different from Ash, who can't define what it is he wants. But…going through Alola, losing the Ceremonies, seeing people laugh and smile without me…I became so focused on it that I think I lost sight of it all."

"That's the thing about focusing: you can pick up the smallest of details, yet miss the most obvious ones along the way."

"Right," Serena said in agreement. Because she finally understood. She wanted so badly to keep that promise and bring back those smiles that she took the whole world on her shoulders. Yet like Kahili had said, the trials, and indeed the entire Pilgrimage, was not about doing things on one's own but by realizing you were a part of something bigger. And she was.

Jessie was just as skilled a Performer that people loved to watch, despite her vanity. Maka would no doubt one day make a film that would captivate people, even if she wasn't to star in it. Even Keoni, for all his lechery, was someone who knew how to make the crowd enjoy themselves. She wasn't in it alone. Sure, more people would notice her, the better she did, but she didn't need  _everyone_  to notice her. Ash had proven that: by fixing a jukebox for a small group of people, that group grew and grew until a whole village was no doubt smiling.

She wanted to laugh at how obvious the answer had been, and kick herself for not hitting upon it that much sooner.

"Ah, looks like the rain is finally stopping, no?" Kahili finally said, pulling Serena away from her revelation. She couldn't help but smile now, like a weight that had been pushing down on her, that burden, had been completely lifted. Kahili turned to her. "I have complete faith, just as you do, that Ash will complete this trial and will come out all the better for it. I really look forward to seeing the answer he comes to, especially since I think the answer has been there all along."

"Isn't it always?" Serena muttered out from under her breath. Kahili did seem to hear it, judging from her nod, and she began to step back out. Her feet squelched slightly on the grass, but other than that, the area was finally drying as the rain moved back out to sea. "Kahili. Thank you."

"For what now?" Kahili asked, beginning her climb up the hill. Serena followed shortly after.

"For helping him. I wish I could have, if I'm honest, but I realize that there are things that Ash goes through that I can't help him with, just like there are things for me that he won't always be able to help with. That you were there when he needed someone who understood means a lot to me," Serena told the older woman. Said woman appeared to laugh at that, though not as if making fun of her.

"It was my pleasure. I feel I've grown as well, mentoring him. He's quite charismatic, you know?" Kahili added with a wink as they continued to climb. Serena definitely laughed at that, because she completely agreed. "And here we are it seems."

Serena stood to her side as they pulled to a stop and looked up, across to the glowing stand where the object of their pursuit sat. It was definitely glowing, though the glow seemed weak, like something was very wrong. She walked forward, Kahili in step next to her as they approached the pedestal that rested there. Their features were all illuminated upon their approach and their pace picked up until, at last, they were standing before their goal.

"No…" was the sound escaped from Serena's mouth. Kahili made a rather vehement "tch" sound at the sight of what was resting before them. It was certainly the Moon Flute, a pale blue in color with the symbol off a bat-shaped moon upon it. This was most obvious thanks to the glow coming off from it.

The only problem was that it was broken.

"All this way for that…" Kahili scoffed out. Serena still walked forward to reach out and clasp her hand around the broken flute, one end hanging from the other. She pulled it back, and the glow almost completely vanished. "So, all this time, it's been broken."

"I'm sure there's some way to fix it. Clemont could probably find it," Serena remarked, holding the very tenuous flute together. There was no way it could work in its current state, but being such an ancient artifact and mystical object, there had to be some way to piece it back together again.

"Probably…but we just don't have time for this," Kahili sighed out. Serena nodded; once more, the bluenette was absolutely right. Their friends were about to go into battle, and even with a broken Moon Flute, they still needed to do their utmost to aid them. "And besides, a broken Moon Flute is better than no Moon Flute at all. We've done all we can here."

"R-right," Serena agreed, turning back to the edge of the island. Kahili was already moving, calling Toucannon again to take to the air. Serena called suit, only calling Primarina into the water and jumping upon her. It was time for them to get back. Knowing that, Serena stowed the broken Moon Flute gingerly in her bag and glanced out towards Poni Island, praying for everyone to be safe and do what needed to be done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So, there was still a lot going on this chapter. Gladion and TRio have reunited with the main group, but Greninja and Clemont are more than concerned. Ash has begun his final trial and is now separated from all his Pokémon. Then we have the broken Moon Flute and everything with Serena and Kahili, which was my favorite scene this chapter. At this point, if you haven't realized, two of the three have figured out their problems. Bonnie, of course, is not included, since her whole thing is becoming stronger so she won't be a victim like she was in Tribulations. I'd say commanding Squishy, and Dedenne becoming a badass qualifies. (Characters like she and Hau were always meant to be a little more static).
> 
> I have a hope that next chapter will be even better! So, until we meet then, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	8. A Despair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapters, but hugely important chapters! From the title alone you'll understand (and be able to guess the next title). That said, my lag in responses will still be in effect today, and should hopefully ease up soon. Now, on to Chapter 8!

Chapter 8

A Despair

"Pikachu! Decidueye! Lycanroc! Guys…?" Ash's voice echoed back at him with no returning words from the others. He sighed loudly, hoping that maybe they would even hear that, but it proved to be relatively pointless. There were no other sounds in the canyon, and if it hadn't been for the powerful seal laid over the place, Ash would have wondered if this even  _was_  a trial site in the first place. For whatever looking he was doing, there was no sign of the Totem Pokémon or any other Pokémon anywhere.

"Guess I gotta do it on my own…" he sighed out once more. Realizing he was on top of a small outcropping of rock to make yet another call for his teammates, he leapt down, his feet kicking up dust on the canyon floor. Up above, the stars were drawn close, and the moon provided scant illumination for his journey through the maze of stone. Ash shivered a bit, reaching up to rub at his arms. "Cold…"

If he was honest, he had no idea how long it had been since he'd started the trial. It seemed like such a short time, but the position of the moon spoke differently and indicated that he had been here and separated from his Pokémon for at least an hour or so. Removing his hands, he shoved them in his pockets and decided to continue walking along the very cold canyon floor. There was no real distinction for any landmarks or where to go as he walked along, so he felt like he was just on some random, aimless journey.

_Maybe I've always been on one_ , he couldn't help but think rather savagely to himself. Ash shook his head, banishing those kinds of demeaning thoughts. His foot suddenly tripped on a stone and he pitched against a wall. The rock felt cold on his skin and he began sliding down it rapidly, feeling a keen sense of exhaustion now settling itself into his bones. His stomach was grumbling, crying out for food; something he decided to satisfy by pulling out a small collection of remaining Oran Berries. It wasn't much, but he knew he'd have to ration it, as much as he wanted to gobble it down. He took one and threw it into his mouth, chewing slowly.

"Still hungry, though…" he grumbled out upon finishing it. Now, he felt rather thirsty, too. Of course, he'd been feeling very thirsty ever since he'd been in that weird mist, like it was some sort of energy sapper or something. Part of Ash wondered if it was produced by a Pokémon to make others thirsty, or that maybe it was just some weird natural phenomenon which came as part and parcel of the trial. Either way, Ash was certain that he'd want Clemont to examine it, or himself, later (just in case there were adverse effects, of course). Then there was the part that didn't care and just wanted to find his Pokémon and complete the trial. That was the part of him that pushed him to get up once more and walk forward through the night-laced canyon.

His gaze consistently swiveled around, looking for any forks in the canyon path that could lead him somewhere different, but he wasn't able to see much of anything. For a second, he stopped and stared up at the sheer cliff face that was before him. He had to wonder if, maybe, he could climb up the walls to the top and survey the entire area. Shrugging to himself, he figured that it couldn't hurt; he wasn't the human Aipom for nothing.

Setting a foot sturdily on the wall, Ash's hands dug for purchase in the rocks and began to lift himself upwards. His other hand reached forward, too, grabbing another edge and continuing to pull up. The issue came at the step upward. As if the canyon wall had a mind of its own, the rock for his foot to hold upon suddenly broke off and sent him tumbling. Naturally, the good thing was that he wasn't too high up, and only his butt managed to absorb the blow from the fall. It still stung, but Ash figured that it was absolutely better than his head or something. Grimacing a little, he reasoned that climbing up was a definite no-go.

"Fine, canyon, you win. I'll stay on the ground," he snapped, realizing he was talking to himself, but not really caring. It wasn't like anyone else was around to hear him in the first place. Rubbing behind his head, Ash hitched his backpack straps on his shoulders and continued on. As he did so, he started thinking of all different ways to find his quarry. There was the option of calling Latias, he supposed, but that seemed like simply cheating, especially when her strength would possibly be needed for the upcoming battle. Shaking off that idea, he kept going, the grimace turning into a scowl.

For some reason, he suddenly felt his locket banging against his chest and he stopped, reaching for it and pulling it off. It was such a little object, and one that he so often paid such little attention to, like it was pretty much just a part of him that he took for granted. He popped the locket open, its gold chain rattling, and he looked inside. Sitting right there were two pictures: one of his mother and father in happier times, and one of himself and Serena. He smiled at it, giving him a slight hope. Clasping the locket and closing it tighter in his hand, he continued to walk along. Then, he felt something on his skin.

"A draft?" he asked, definitely recognizing the tickling on his skin as that of a breeze which was softly swaying through the area. He narrowed his eyes, looking for just where it was coming from. His tongue stuck out, like it would help him to identify the source of the breeze (well, at least it was worth a try, he thought to himself). Naturally, that did nothing, but his eyes definitely managed to see something different than just rock. He saw vines sitting at the base of the canyon.

Ash's feet carried him forward, almost right up against the wall and he dropped to his knees, almost planting his face into the brush. The vines were certainly gnarly and looked painful to the touch, but Ash couldn't help but feel that the draft was most certainly coming from this exact spot in the wall. Licking his lips and the roof of his dry mouth, Ash reached forward and pulled the vines apart. His hands were nicked and he felt a few droplets of blood spill out as he did so, but after just a moment, all of the vines were pulled away and Ash could scoot back to admire his own handiwork. Sitting right there, where the vines had been, was a passageway, big enough for him to fit through, but perhaps not all that much else, which made him start to wonder if it was such a good idea to enter.

"Well, I'm not going to get anywhere if I just keep thinking like that," Ash said, rolling his shoulders in order to loosen his muscles. Once he felt he was loosened enough, he dove down and entered into the small hole on his hands and knees. It was a tight squeeze, of course, but Ash at least felt he had enough room that he wouldn't become claustrophobic. The real issue was how dark it was. It was just a little frightening, because the only sight of light that he had was the moon dancing on the canyon floor on the opposite side, but that just seemed so far away. "No giving up…"

That was what he kept telling himself, for all the good it did. Push after push, one arm in front of the other, he kept moving along, and when he nearly reached that final location, a new sound finally entered his mind. It was like trickling water. That pushed him all the harder, and despite some strain to fit through the exit, Ash managed to pull himself out on the other side with a gasp. He took a moment to catch his breath, coming to stand by placing his hands on his knees as he did so. The trickling water didn't go away.

When he finally recovered, Ash looked and saw what he had already suspected: there were large pools of water dotting this area of the canyon. In fact, this area looked almost completely different to the path he'd been on just a few moments earlier, like he had broken into a completely new area. There were sloping ridges now, and vines that hung over the area. What looked like an enormous tree root seemed to crisscross all over the area, connected to some of the upper levels, while the canyon floor continued to stretch onward. Lining that canyon floor were the same pools as right in front of him, each of them connected like a stream that was running from the ocean or something, even though the source of it all was really quite invisible or just too far out of range.

"Maybe it connects to where the Totem Pokémon lives," Ash started reasoning to himself. After all, Pokémon still needed food and water, didn't they? Thinking of that, Ash realized that  _he_  needed some water as well, and he started for a pool that sat underneath a patch of moonlight, the parched feeling in his throat growing all the stronger at the sight of what it wanted finally sitting right before it. He slid to the ground, cupping his hands to take a drink, when he stopped. It wasn't because of any warning or something like that, but more because of what he saw in the water. Rather, it was what he  _didn't_  see.

Staring into the water, he felt positively frozen. Looking right up at him was his own reflection…but nothing else. No stars or moon, and none of the canyon walls were reflected in that water's surface. It was just him, staring back up at him. Occasionally, the image would flicker, leaving an empty surface, but Ash felt himself mesmerized by this image. Now, Hapu's words were coming back to him clearly; the ones in the Haina Desert, telling them to not drink the water. He clenched, wanting to so badly, the thirst almost consuming him, but he didn't.

"It's Tapu Fini's water," he finally realized, sitting back and just staring at the trickling pools. As if in some vain hope, he reached into his backpack and pulled out his water jug, but it was already empty from his unquenchable thirst. His gaze went back to the water but he kept shaking his head, telling himself not to drink from it at all. It wouldn't be good for him or anyone else if he were to do that.  _If only Pikachu and the others were here…_

Not able to think about what else to do, Ash leaned back over the water, wondering if, perhaps, he'd see anything different. He didn't. At least, not at first. His chocolate eyes stared back at him in the reflection, and he could hear his own breathing until, at last, he noticed the remarkably striking difference: he wasn't wearing the same clothes. Where he knew he was wearing his vest and shirt that Serena and his mother had made, instead he saw his old clothes, from the day he started his journey. He fell backwards once again.

_What is going on here?_  Ash had to wonder. Sure, he knew that every one of the Tapu's springs seemed to carry a different property, but this was just…odd. It wasn't even close to the Ruins of Hope! Shaking a little at seeing himself six years ago, Ash forced himself to stand and looked around for a way out, finally catching sight of the path that led upwards, on the border of the canyon walls. It wasn't much of an option, but it was much better than staying near these beyond creepy pools. Yet at the same time, he felt so drawn to the pools, like it was calling for him to drink and peer into it. The foreboding in Ash's heart spoke against it, though, reminding him what a bad idea that would be.

"So thirsty, though…" Ash rasped out, still feeling how dry his mouth and throat were. He puffed his cheeks in and out, creating a mess of saliva that he then swallowed. It didn't do much, but it was enough to help him turn away and hitch his bag once more. "No looking. Don't look. Don't look."

He wished that he had someone to slap him and tell him not to, or just a presence that would distract him from those enchanting pools. It made him wish Serena was here to distract him. Or Pikachu and the others. Worry overtook his senses now, which actually made him grateful. He wanted his Pokémon by his side, and even though they were all very capable, he still worried about what had happened to them in the mist at the mouth of the canyon. It gave him an objective beyond just completing the trial. His Pokémon were more important to him than anything in this world, unless one counted Serena and his friends and family.

_Why are they so important?_  his mind seemed to suddenly torment him. It was like the question about being a Pokémon Master all over again. Of course, for the kind of question relating to his own Pokémon, he already knew the answer: being with them helped to drive him forward. What it was driving him to, though, was ultimately the deeper question that he needed to have answered. It was the question that was infesting his mind, making him worry about things he never had before, and though he wanted to ignore it or focus on his other objectives, being alone with his thoughts now made it a complete impossibility.

Ash shook his head and jogged forward for the slope leading upwards, some jutting rocks resting in his path as he did so. He skirted those, trying to keep pushing forward up the slope. It was fairly steep, he realized, and it made it difficult to traverse. With every step, his brain started asking himself about the image in the pool, almost yearning to return to it. With every passing rock, it told him to go back, but he refused. His breath was beginning to come in sharp heaves and he had to stop halfway up, clutching at his chest. It wasn't a shortness of breath that Clemont usually had from being unfit, though.

He felt burdened, his body wracking itself with a sudden thrill of fear. His head turned back towards the pools he had left behind. Why was it sitting on his mind? It was like it was pushing him to confront something and…he was scared. He didn't want to see what rested in that water, because something told him it could break him inside. His mouth opened, breath coming out in a fog, and he gripped at one of the rocks to keep himself moving forward as much as he could. His chest burned.

"Hah…hah…" he breathed out, every step away from the pool becoming like a strain, until, at last, it lessened. Ash nearly fell to his knees once he reached the top, only propping himself by falling against the wall and purposefully holding himself up with every bit of energy he had. He turned, placing his back against the stone's cool surface. This was no ordinary canyon, and like they had said, it was certainly no ordinary trial.

Ash took the moment to pause, looking at the locket in his hands, running his finger over the picture of him and Serena. It felt weird to think about her right now, yet all he could see was her smile, both the one in the picture and the one in his mind. Alongside it, he almost felt like he could hear Pikachu, but knew it was merely in his head, unlike the picture and smile in front of him. Those thoughts allowed him to regain his breath, snapping the locket shut again. He'd be back to her soon; he'd promised that. In fact, he couldn't wait to see all of them again, seeing how they'd all grown over the last month away. How was Clemont? Had he finally realized his strength? Had Bonnie grown as a potential trainer? He hoped Greninja was doing okay, too.

And Lillie. He certainly couldn't forget about her. From everything Serena appeared to have said, the blonde had grown in leaps and bounds. She and Komala were a real team, and she had a Z-Ring now. The past no longer shackled her. It put an extra fire in his legs to push forward. Though, naturally, his mind decided to parrot the question back:  _What about_ your _past?_  Ash ignored that, facing forward to the ledge on the other side of the canyon, the two outcroppings joined together only by the thick roots of the tree that spanned the canyon.

Ash stepped forward, pressing his foot on the root and testing its weight. It seemed good, and he walked forward, passing along the roots carefully. While they certainly held his weight, there was still a sense of trepidation to be had. There was no railing to protect him, so Ash had to take it slowly, in order to ensure that he didn't fall at any point. It was slow going, though it wasn't like he was crawling as Serena would. That made him snort. She could beat the toughest of foes without batting an eye, but in these situations, she was practically crippled.

He suddenly stopped, looking out over the vastness of the canyon. From where he was, it was amazing just how much of the canyon was visible: its winding roads and passages, the little nooks in the cave. Over in the distance, Ash could swear that he saw a large stone structure that appeared to be the Altar of the Sunne, but he couldn't be sure. Turning a little more, he saw that there was also another path; one that his friends were most likely upon, but he couldn't tell much else unless one counted all the roots and rocks that dotted the area. Ash made a mental note of where he supposed the Altar was, thinking that heading there was the best option.

He turned again to continue onward, and his foot suddenly slipped. He gasped involuntarily, waving his arms madly as he hoped to catch on to something. It really felt like this whole canyon was out to get him at this point. His backpack slipped from around his shoulders, tumbling down below, faster than his own body did, feeling like his own form was slipping in slow motion. The bag hit the ground with an audible thud and Ash's hand opened, the locket slipping from his grasp. He scrabbled to reach it, wanting to grab ahold of it but finding he couldn't.

"Pikachu!" he called, knowing his best friend was nowhere near enough to there in order to see him or hear him. Ash continued struggling for all of a second more, clasping the locket just barely before he finished his descent. With a loud splash, he plunged into the waters below.

* * *

The boat pulled into port faster than Serena expected it to. They had been able to circumvent the Exeggutor easily enough on the way back down by using the lack of need to climb the island, in order to get back to the ship, but she still hadn't expected them to arrive back in the Seafolk Village quite as quickly. The party at the restaurant was still going strong, with the jukebox playing a much more melodic tune that strangely made her think of Dawn. Yet they had no time for that, not with the impending battle. Kahili made that obvious by leaping off the boat before it even had a chance to stop.

"Contact Aidan at the Aether Foundation," she spoke sharply to the boatman. "Tell him we got the Moon Flute, but uh…let's not share the broken part. We might still be okay."

"You got it, Miss Kahili," the driver said, saluting her, like it was his general duty. Well, Serena figured that it really had to be, in the end, otherwise none of them would have been able to do their job of constantly driving a lot of them all over the region in the last month. Either way, the man offered a thumbs up, while Kahili nodded and turned back in. Serena smiled at the driver, but didn't do much more, feeling the pressure of needing to join the others.

"Let's roll," Kahili said, jerking her head back towards the wilds. Serena didn't think she needed to be told that, but wasn't about to protest it, either way. She ran forward, keeping pace with the older woman, who was actually drawing a golf club out, like she was planning to whack a few people whenever she would have the chance to. Serena rolled her eyes at that. They really were suited as teacher and student; both were ready to beat anything that got in their way at a moment's notice. "Hapu and Mina should be meeting us near the entrance to the canyon. I just hope the major fight hasn't started yet."

"Clemont's got a sharp head on his shoulders, and I'm sure Lillie is pretty calm if she knows what needs to be done. Same with Gladion and Lionel. I don't think they'd strike Team Skull without all of us gathering together," Serena explained, her breath short as she continued to run along. Kahili's lips were pursed, and she nodded. That brief moment of silence allowed for Serena to look over at the looming canyon that was pretty much in their face by this point. Was Ash still deep inside there now? She had to wonder how he was faring.

_No, Serena! This isn't the time to think about that!_  she chided herself. Thinking about her boyfriend wasn't the worst thing, but with such a major battle and a need for haste, allowing herself to get distracted was  _not_  the best of things, to be sure. As a result, she sent one final well wish his way and cast him from her mind.  _Please, make it, Ash. Make it out alive._

The female duo broke out of the Seafolk Village, dashing into the forested plains of the Poni Wildlands. Now that they weren't thinking about Ash's battle or keeping close to the coast, Serena had the chance to breathe in the night air of the wilds that she had gotten somewhat used to on their journey to Poni Island nearly a month before. Their footsteps as they ran were muffled against the grass, but the canyon was looming ever closer, as were the homes that were situated near its entrance. All of these things were sights all too familiar to Serena, but nothing she was planning on stopping for, just to reexamine; there was no time for it in their rush to get to the canyon path.

The one thing she did slow for was the sight of the Poni Breaker Coast and the practically glowing ruins beyond it. Kahili kept going, yet Serena couldn't help but to slow. What were the Tapus up to? From the news a month ago of them fighting off the Ultra Beasts, they had to have been aware of just what was about to happen. Yet, as far as she knew, they had no plans to take part in their preliminary strike. Were they mustering all of their power for the Day of Stars? Or did they need Nebby to awaken in order to think of even doing anything? Maybe they just didn't care about whatever they humans had decided, only moving in accordance with nature? She wasn't sure, but it didn't sit right with her.

Serena breathed in and out calmly, remembering her time in Tapu Fini's microcosm of a world, located in the Ruins of Hope. The water there was so strange, showing her so many frightful moments: failing in the Ceremony, having to speak up to her mother…Reeree's death in her arms. They were so filled with despair, and it hurt Serena inside. She had to wonder if Kahili had somehow undergone some of the same things in her time as Island Champion. Not that she felt comfortable enough asking that sort of thing of the woman. They simply didn't know each other well enough.

"Serena!" Kahili called back with some urgency in her voice. Chiding herself for delaying so long, Serena wrenched her gaze away from the gate to the ruins. Her feet turned and she dashed after Kahili as quickly as she could. The houses were now passing by her, some lights on inside a couple of the settlements there, making it seem lively for at least a second or two. Smoke curdled out of one of the houses, but as Serena turned her head, she remembered how broken down the area was, with only an outer wall remaining of an old home, overgrown by weeds.

"Sorry about that," Serena huffed out as she finally managed to catch up to the older woman. Kahili simply offered a sharp nod to show that it didn't bother her too much. The canyon entrance was quickly approaching, though there was as of yet no sign of Hapu or Mina. Serena sucked on her own tongue a little bit before broaching a rather touchy subject. "Kahili, do you think we'll succeed?"

"We have to, don't we?" was Kahili's rather blunt response, though Serena took no real comfort from it. Mostly, it was because she could see the woman's body language and how tense it was; how tense it had been since they'd discovered that the Moon Flute was broken and knowing that they seemed to have no current knowledge of how to fix it. She only hoped they wouldn't need it, or that perhaps there was a book in Lillie's collection that could explain how to do so, anyway. "Even if we can't, we have to do the best we can to lay the groundwork. The second that the Day of Stars hits, it's game over…or at least our last chance before that. No matter what though, thanks but no thanks on that chance: I'd prefer to stop those monsters here and now."

"Right," Serena said, her eyes narrowing. It had really been a rather stupid question straight from the very beginning, and she hated herself for eating up time for it. The canyon was nearly on top of them, and from the speed that Kahili was going, it seemed clear that she was far more used to the place than Serena was, likely from past excursions. Serena's own group hadn't had time to explore the place a month ago, not with the threat of Team Skull that was there and their own tasks to complete in such a time limit.

"Come  _on_ , Hapu, how long does it take to drop someone off at the trial?" Kahili snapped almost angrily under her breath as they continued to run along. The walls were drawing close, the moon reflecting on their surface, and Kahili finally skidded to a stop just outside the entrance to the canyon. Serena almost tripped over her feet at the sudden stop, turning to face Kahili, who removed her golf cap for a moment to run a hand through her hair before cocking her hips to the side in annoyance. She wasn't sure what to do or say, so instead she listened. Before long, Serena heard the clopping of hooves.

"Sorry we're late," Hapu called out, and Serena could barely see the form of the woman, herself, and Mina riding atop Mudsdale. "We forgot to heal up following our battle and then Mina got distracted in the woods."

"I didn't," Mina said with a slight yawn, like she felt she should be sleeping instead of about to fight a battle. Serena wasn't sure what reaction she should have to that. "I merely stumbled upon a scene for a beautiful picture."

"Anyway, that's how we seemed to end up behind you," Hapu laughed out, but it didn't carry any real mirth. Unlike the seemingly flighty Mina, she knew how to consistently remain serious whenever the situation seemed to call for it, like that moment. Kahili didn't care.

"At least you're here now. Everything go well with Ash?" Kahili asked promptly, receiving a nod in turn. To that, the older woman sighed and turned to face into the canyon. Hapu approached to join her friend in doing so, the question about their own previous excursion on her eyes and lips, though neither seemed ready to give the response about what had occurred with the Moon Flute. Now wasn't the time for it, either; it was the time for battle. Clemont and the others were ahead; Ash was on his final trial and would join them; the rest of this was down to them for the moment.

"Can we ride Mudsdale to the end?" Mina asked, putting some of the attention on to her. Kahili, however, just rolled her eyes and walked to the girl, pulling her from it testily and glaring at her. "What? I'm only slightly informed about what's going on."

"If you didn't spend so much time focusing on your art, maybe you'd be more aware. We've only been planning all of this for a month!" Kahili said, even more testily than usual, as evidenced by her slapping the girl on the back of her head. Mina rubbed it, but did nothing in retaliation. She struck Serena as someone who really liked to go with the flow of things, or just support her friends with whatever they needed supporting on. A perfect trio of headstrong, lazy and mediator. Serena laughed a little.

"Sorry, Mina, but this battle will be important, and Mudsdale, for all his strength, cannot carry us as burdens before then," Hapu explained, returning her trustworthy steed to his pokeball. All of that said, the quartet looked forward into the near consuming void that was the Vast Poni Canyon before them. "It'll be a straight shot to the Altar, if we want a chance of catching up with them."

"No more talking, then," Kahili snapped harshly, walking forward and clanking her golf club loudly on the ground. Serena gripped at Braixen's pokeball, ready for the battle, and swept along after her. The remaining two women soon joined them and they plunged into the night-filled canyon. Instantly, the air grew colder, an effect cleanly felt upon her thighs from her skirt. She ignored it, keeping close to the others in the darkness. Eventually, it was truly too dark to see, considering Mina slammed into a wall.

"Braixen, I need your help," Serena said quietly, careful to not let her voice echo too loudly in the space. The Fox Pokémon emerged, her branch flipping into her hands and lighting on fire. It provided a nice, ambient light for them to walk by. Kahili kept moving forward.

A wind howled through the canyon, making the hairs on the back of Serena's neck prick upwards from the chill. The entire place was completely silent, showing that Gladion and Team Rocket must have really traveled through this area some time ago. A fork was approaching, but none of the three women paid it any mind, indicating that the straightest path was no doubt the quickest in order to catch up with their friends. Serena paused a moment, feeling a sudden sense of foreboding that even Braixen shared in. There was that little voice telling her not to go down this way whatsoever, and to instead take the longer path around. Unfortunately, the louder voice that was Kahili's forward progression and the insistence that time was of the essence won out.

They continued along, down the straight path, and Serena noticed it was beginning to widen a little. There were also jutting cliffs and hanging vines that made up the area, barely lit up by the fire at the end of Braixen's wand. Serena sucked in her breaths, the cold air hurting her lungs a bit and causing goosebumps to ripple up and down her arms. Suddenly, in one of the widest areas, Kahili stopped. So did Hapu. Mina seemed to do so, as well, but considering her distracted expression in staring at the color composition of the rocks, Serena roughly passed it off as unimportant for the captain. No one made or move or said a thing for a bit. All Serena heard was the trickling of a pebble falling.

"It's too quiet. Not even any Pokémon sounds, and they're more than abundant in this part of the canyon," Kahili said. Hapu was nodding, as well. Serena drew closer, all four of them pressing their backs up against one another. She grimaced, knowing her earlier feeling had been correct. "So, planning to show yourself, or do we have to be the ones that strike first, Team Skull?"

Silence passed, and Serena had a thrill of hope, for just a moment, that their observations had been proven incorrect. Then the chuckling came, and the shuffling movement. Braixen raised her wand high, painting the walls with firelight and showing off the multitude of Skull grunts that were now lining the canyon walls and cliffs. Out amongst them were their Pokémon, attempting to look menacing. It certainly wasn't their full force, either. The notable thing, however, was that Plumeria was there on the cliff, her Salazzle at her side, wearing an indiscernible look; she could have been anything from angry to bored to frustrated, and Serena wouldn't know the difference.

"Have I told you that I  _hate_  how observant you are?" the big sister of Team Skull spoke, bouncing her leg up and down, slowly. Out of all of them, she was the only one actually sitting, one leg crossed over the other. "And I hate complications. Why couldn't you just be ambushed like we wanted?"

"So, you scoundrels  _were_  planning an ambush!" Hapu pointed out. All of them were clasping their pokeballs tightly now, ready for whatever battle was about to burst amongst the forces colliding there. Some of the Skull grunts were dropping from the cliff, and while some faceplanted, others took up positions like a barricade that prevented them from moving forward.

"Duh," Plumeria mocked sardonically, rolling her eyes liberally. "You really think we've camped out here the last month just to let you waltz in."

"You…what did you do with the others? !" Serena demanded angrily, Braixen joining her. Plumeria practically ignored her, eyes focusing on Kahili. Both women were sneering at each other. Eventually, Plumeria waved her hand, like the whole thing was inconsequential.

"I have no idea what happened with your friends," she answered. Salazzle hissed menacingly. "Truth be told, it doesn't matter. They'll just run into the rest of the gang at the altar and be dealt with there. I just decided to stop anyone stupid enough to come down  _this_  path, and look what happened. Have to wonder what you people missed that they didn't."

"Yes, indeed," Kahili said with a smirk, though the tone of her response indicated she wasn't referring to Plumeria's final statement, having clearly ignored it. Without warning, she threw two pokeballs into the air, her Toucannon and Skarmory emerging. The golfer didn't even have to give commands. Toucannon shot off for the sky while Skarmory hung back; clearly the former was going to scout out the area ahead for the battle. Plumeria scoffed in annoyance. "I've been looking forward to another square off since we scuffled at the Paradise, 'Flower of Skull'."

"I haven't," Plumeria admitted, a slight scowl flashing across her face at the nickname. The Skull grunts moved closer, and both Mudsdale and Ribombee appeared for battle. The air was fraught with tension, threatening to spill over at the slightest push. Serena breathed, steadying herself. "Now that I know who you are, I'm not about to be stupid and fight you one-on-one. Just stand down or move aside."

"No,  _you_  move aside," Serena demanded of the older woman, finally earning a disparaging look from her. No one made any other move until Plumeria started laughing loudly, sounding almost manic. Serena pushed her moment forward. "This is  _our_  world on the line. I don't care what kind of fanatical devotion you have, that's no excuse for-"

"Shut up, prissy little princess," Plumeria snapped angrily, her face filled with rage. "I really don't give a damn about  _your_ dream or  _your_ world. We only care about Guzma, because he offered us a home when everyone else turned their backs on us. He gave us a life when we had none. And if he asks this one thing of us, then we'll do it. He saved us, so we'll save him from people like you who take and take, leaving no dreams behind for anybody like us."

"Grow up," Kahili shouted up at the woman. Plumeria didn't seem affected by the comment, though. She just raised her fingers and snapped them powerfully. The Skull grunts chuckled and thrust their fists forward. All at once, the forces moved in to converge, with Gumshoos and Raticate jumping through the air and Golbat all convening quickly. The quartet of females turned to face in different directions, ready to call for a command the second their opponents got close.

As it turned out, there was no need.

"Chespin, use Rollout! Charjabug, Charge Beam!" Serena turned her head at the all too welcome voice, a grin on her face as she did so.

"Yo, you can't ambush the ambushers! That ain't coo-" Whatever the grunt was trying to say, Clemont had cut him off. Or rather, Greninja did, slamming into them with a Water Shuriken as he flipped through the air and landed in the center with the others, all four women glancing at him a moment. The Team Skull members backed off somewhat, except for Plumeria above, who looked extremely annoyed by this point.

"Sorry I'm a little late! Took longer than I thought to backtrack!" Clemont called out, and Serena could finally see her friend approaching. She grinned at him, which he returned as Braixen greeted Greninja happily. "I know you guys could handle it, but we don't have much time for that, do we? We'll need our best fighters at the altar before sunrise, which could happen before you know it."

"Way to put yourself down," Kahili said, but Clemont didn't look to be paying attention. Serena watched him instead stride forward, whipping his hat off and standing in front of Kahili while he faced Plumeria.

"I'm not at all," he said, adjusting his glasses. Then he smirked up at Plumeria while Chespin and Charjabug came to his side. The Skull grunts were starting to regroup from the sudden, earlier attack to their flank. "I just know you shouldn't waste your time or strength here when I can handle it. I'm going to settle things once and for all with her."

Plumeria blinked, looking slightly nonplussed. Then she laughed and came out of her sitting position, standing and looking down upon the inventor with a smirk. "I wasn't aware we even had a tally going, but if you want to get your ass kicked one more time, I'm more than happy to oblige. You're not taking the boss away. We won't let you. Let's go boys and girls, one last Team Skull rumble!"

"You got it Big Sis!" Before Serena could say any more, their enemies leapt forward once again, and the battle they had long been waiting to start had finally begun.

* * *

He was drowning, endlessly falling downward. There was no light, and no escape. Just the darkness and the water that was threatening to consume him entirely. And yet, even as he felt he was drowning, he could breathe. The only thing making him panic was the weight that felt it was pressing itself upon his chest, keeping him submerged. He had to get out, had to get back home.

_Pikachu…Serena…_

Ash's eyes snapped open, floating in that endless space, but he soon discovered that it seemed he was not trapped within water. Instead, it was something else; some bizarre twisting of elements, like a film reel that was being played out before his eyes. Then he noticed, clasped around his finger, was a golden chain, tying itself to one of the panels of those "film reels". He pulled on it and, all of a sudden, it began dragging on him like a mysterious gravitational force. He was jerked forward, and all of those unspooling film reels moved inward, like writhing vines, seeking to ensnare him.

_No! I don't want to!_  his mind screamed what his mouth could not. They tangled around him and Ash felt his head flying back…or perhaps he had just imagined it. Either way, visions suddenly touched his brain. There was a flash of lightning, and he saw two figures on the ground…no, one was standing, and then both.

"My name is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town! I am destined to be the world's number one Pokémon Master. I can't be defeated by the likes of you!" Ash eyes widened. It was…him. His heart caught in his chest at the sight, remembering the day with almost perfect clarity. Why? Why was he seeing this?

_Pokémon Master…_ Ash couldn't help but think. It had always been his claim, constantly. Standing there, though, had he really been so naïve? He had nearly gotten himself and Pikachu killed. How could he have ever said he would be a Pokémon Master in such a stupid moment? Lightning flashed, and Ash found himself spiraling away, far away, until he was standing above a Gym battle between a Pikachu and a Raichu. The sight was clear as to what it was: the day Pikachu was defeated by Lt. Surge's Raichu.  _No! Pikachu!_

He was yanked away, still bound by that gold chain, still falling into the abyss of memory. So many were flashing through his mind, it was starting to hurt. He was held in thrall by these constant memories that were assailing him and berating him with no end. His eyes snapped shut, yet even without them open, he could still hear everything that was going on.

"Ash, you won't be able to win the Pokémon League if you don't train!"

"I'm gonna train! Just watch me!" He had been so stupid, thinking he would become a Pokémon Master without any sense of training at all. And even so…what  _was_  a Pokémon Master? Ash wanted to grip his head from the pain he felt, almost wondering if, perhaps, he'd suffered a concussion in his fall.

"Pikachu is unable to battle!"

"Charizard is unable to battle!"

_No, stop it!_  Ash was demanding. Loss wasn't supposed to hurt like this, was it? He'd gotten over that kind of pain. Loss only allowed one to grow. Winning and losing were all part of the same coin, so why did hearing all this cause him pain? He opened his eyes again, seeing Charizard fainted before the form of Blaziken, and Pikachu defeated by Eevee, and then Meowth. He had failed. Failed so many times in winning a League conference.

_But I got closer, didn't I?_  he asked of himself.  _Until Unova, I was always getting better. Moving up! I even got in the finals!_  More memories flashed before him, tied to that golden chain that was inexorably dragging him along. Suddenly, looming before him was Paul, like a gigantic mountain he had once had to overcome. The rival that had pushed him, made him think…broke him.

"Monferno is unable to battle!" Ash flinched. He had let them down that day. He had let  _himself_  down that day. He had thought that maybe, just maybe, he had grown a little bit, that it all actually meant something with the wins and losses, until Paul shoved it all right back in his face and proved that he was nothing compared to him. Months of struggling, training, convincing himself that his path was right, and Paul had crushed it to tiny pieces. Whether he'd intended to or not, Ash never knew, but that one battle on the shores of Lake Acuity changed him, even if the raven-haired trainer didn't notice it.

_Is it right? My path…?_  The question almost hurt to ask, yet he had to wonder. He wanted to be a Pokémon Master so badly that he could taste it in his very veins, and he was moving forward, he always thought. He was on the right path: win the League, defeat the Champion. To do that he needed to train and win and battle more and be with his Pokémon.  _But why? Why are you battling? For what purpose? How does that make you a Pokémon Master? What does being that even mean to you?_

"Pikachu is unable to battle!" Ash could only breathe out a silent sigh that he wasn't even aware he had been holding the entire time. Pikachu was before him as lightning flashed. Underneath that lightning, there seemed to be a smile, one he yearned for; one that the gold chain, flashing with flecks of blue, was connected to. Regardless, Pikachu was slumped against Latios. Even after his greatest victory, it was always there to remind him how someone was better.

_But I had grown!_  The insistence was starting to feel hollow as he saw Pikachu fall again, heard the mocking resentments already directed straight towards his face. He was such a kid. He wasn't even basic. He was from the boonies. Loser. Loser. Loser. Gary was here, Ash is a loser. Pathetic.  _Nothing_.

"Greninja is unable to battle!" Ash's chest hurt again. Yes, he had been so close…so close that he could have reached out and grabbed it, yet he fell short. Like always, he had fallen short again and again.  _Why? Why couldn't I win? Why couldn't I…_

Then the scarier question suddenly surfaced in his mind like a menacing specter:  _what would it have meant if I_ did _win?_

Ash's eyes grew wide at that thought. He had never questioned it. He just moved forward with unrelenting and willful optimism that kept him making great strides. Another flash of lightning and he saw Keoni's infuriating smirk calling him a loser again. Calling him pathetic again. He had never accomplished anything. He had never amounted to anything. Tears pricked at Ash's eyes; ones that he didn't want to shed, yet they would not stop from being there.

"Yer nothin'!"

"Yer just a kid who doesn't even know what he is!"

"Pathetic. Why must you always keep disappointing me?"

Flashes of light were assailing him, all his failures and successes. With them were the questions that seemed so random and out of place, yet tied back to that one inescapable point they were trying to make. Still, he was forced to watch those memories. Pikachu defeating Dragonite, netting him that trophy. Finally defeating Gary in that heated battle that allowed them to settle their differences once and for all. Then he lost again and again. The Battle Frontier…he had overcome so many challenges and now, it felt like he had only done them because he was strong, nothing else. And then, they seemed to exist only to be torn down by Paul soon after. Why did he do it all? Why did he face such pain? Such exultation?

None of it meant a thing!

_No, that's not true! It can't be true! I'm me! I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town! I'm going to be…a…Pokémon Master…_ Ash's silent cries went unheard to the swirling chaos all around him. He was yanked forward by the golden chain, still feeling like he was drowning in the abyss of memories before him. Every moment brought him joy and pain, great victory and bitter defeat. Yet he didn't know why. How could he? He had claimed what he wanted to be, yet suddenly, it was like he didn't know what it truly was at all. Why did he take this path? Why didn't he just leave it?

Brock had changed, after all, going to become a doctor instead of a breeder. Gary had turned to researching. When the dreams they'd had weren't working out, or when perhaps they realized that their passions had lay elsewhere, they changed, moved on. Yet he'd kept going, believing he was getting somewhere. Moving forward on the path he believed in, even if he couldn't define that very path. It seemed so simple to him, until now. Until now, when he felt like he should have been at the cusp of becoming a Pokémon Master, he suddenly realized.

"I was nowhere near close to begin with, was I?" his voice finally spoke. All of a sudden, the memories before him broke with that next flash of lightning, and he saw the face of the one thing he had truly been connected to all this time. Serena. Only, it wasn't the Serena that he knew and loved. It was the other one. The one that was so cold in his dreams, beginning to walk away. He wanted to give chase but found himself completely mired in place. His breath was catching and his throat was constricting. He wanted to gasp, and rage, and scream towards her, wanting her to come back to him. When everything seemed lost, his hand reaching out for her yet again, she turned, still wearing that sad little smile, mixed with a disdainful expression.

"And what does that make you? Who are you, Ash?"

The golden chain broke, crumbling into pieces, and Ash suddenly felt himself gasping for air, sitting up as his body ached all over. He was no longer submerged in the water. His body was bruised, battered and soaking, not to mention cold in the nighttime canyon air. He started to shiver, and he took off his vest as rapidly as he could, then his shirt, before grabbing something fresh to keep him warm from his backpack. His mind was reeling, shattering into tiny pieces. Hapu's warning about losing himself came back to him, as did all of the memories.

Ash closed his eyes, keenly feeling the sting of each and every one of them on his heart. The losses hurt because they were losses, ones that never really helped him move forward. The wins hurt because he had no idea what they did for him any longer, what they ever really meant. He had completely lost any meaning to the path he had been walking. Yet, amidst all that, his Pokémon stuck by his side. Pikachu was there through all of it, striving for a dream that he didn't even know what it was…or why he wanted it.

"No…" Ash breathed out with his shuddering gasps. He gripped on to his backpack, snatching it from the ground, and nearly stumbled backwards, but caught himself on the edge of the pool. His face looked in, still seeing that same face: younger, inexperienced, staring back at him. "I have…to find them…"

Ash pulled himself away from the pool, wrenching himself upward with all the effort that it could take to do so. His heart was hurting, but he needed to do this. He needed his Pokémon by his side. They had stuck with him through every victory, defeat and fun times in between. Surely, they must have known that they were on some aimless journey. If they did…why did they do it? He needed to know.

There was a loud, guttural growling noise, and Ash clenched at his stomach as he continued to walk along, feeling so numb, inside and out. His legs felt like giving out all of a sudden and he stumbled into the canyon wall. He still pushed upward. He had to do this. No giving up! That was their maxim! He'd never be able to face Serena again if he…

_Who are you?_  The question was sharp and biting, and now it made Ash stop. If anyone asked before, he would have proclaimed the same thing as always: Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town, future Pokémon Master. Now, though…he didn't know. Who  _was_  he? What did saying any of that even  _mean_?

_You've become a wonderful Pokémon Master._  His legs finally gave out, and Ash collapsed to the ground, his knees hitting the stone surface painfully. Those words that his father had spoken, his final moments…they cut deep inside him. Before, it had been such a source of pride, knowing that his father considered him the one thing that he always wanted to be. He could have never imagined thinking anything different. Nor could he have imagined that he had no reason for being a Pokémon Master, or that he couldn't define what it was.

And if he could no longer define that, it simply meant that he had arrived right back at zero. He had never left. He was that same boy that departed from Pallet Town. The same one no one expected anything from. They had probably thought his proclamation of being a Pokémon Master was silly, too, because he was the kid with no special skills. Just egotistical boasting and pride. Not a prestigious family. Not a genius-level intellect. Not even the common sense to wake up on time.

And in the end, Guzma, the man's leering grin surfacing in Ash's mind, was right. In the end, knowing he had never moved past being the kid from that first day, it was clear. He was…

"Nothing…" Ash breathed out, falling back and having his butt hit the ground. His knees drew in, and though no tears came, his body was wracked with despair all around him. He could never be a Pokémon Master, because he didn't even know what it was. Would never obtain it because he didn't know why he wanted to. And he'd never be more than nothing, just like Guzma said, because for all his training and hard work…he was still just Ash, and he truly hadn't understood a thing. So, he drew his knees even further in and shook with that settling realization of how empty he was at long last. And his next words encapsulated everything he was feeling from that horrific truth: "It hurts…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I'll freely admit how philosophical this chapter was. Next to no action and almost no dialogue during the Ash portions. Naturally, hard to have a dialogue chain when you're alone, but I'd like to think it makes sense. Hopefully you enjoyed it for how different it was. Of course, the hardest part was breaking Ash but he's still Ash. That was very much the entire point of this chapter in every way (well, other than setting up what was the inevitable Clemont vs. Plumeria showdown). Of course, realizing that you could never reach your dream because you didn't know what it was would break anyone. This is the moment I have been building to, and the next chapter should bring it home.
> 
> What is a Pokémon Master to Ash? Why does he want it? Who is he? Because right now, he's nothing…and maybe that's the answer. Who knows? All I can say is that I hope the next chapter is the best chapter you've ever read from me…we'll see.
> 
> The crux of it all is next chapter, so I hope you'll continue to stick around. Until then, please do Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	9. A Hope

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before we enter this chapter, I want to note that, of course, this is my own interpretation as I've built towards it. Hopefully you'll accept it. On a different note, towards the end, at the time of writing I was highly obsessed (still am) with the film Your Name. To that end, the song "Mitsuha's Theme" was used heavily when writing a particular moment of the chapter. Hopefully, you'll see where and can use it too! That said, time for Chapter 9!

Chapter 9

A Hope

Clemont ducked as a Charge Beam swept over his head. Charjabug was spinning, causing the charged electricity to fly all over the place. Some of the Skull grunts were smart enough to pull themselves back, while others on the canyon walls only took a few steps away. For those that didn't have the clarity of mind to avoid, however, the beam struck them and sent them scattering into a few others as though they were bowling pins, tumbling backwards. Charjabug finished his rotations and Clemont looked up sharply, seeing the deep gouges now in the canyon wall from the powerful attack of his Pokémon.

"Serena, get moving!" Clemont commanded powerfully. His gaze never once traveled to his friend, keeping his sights locked on Plumeria and those Skull thugs that were surrounding her like some sort of protectorate. She just considered him with the utmost disdain, like something to sweep away rather than actually pay attention to.

"Clemont," Serena said, and he could hear her desire to stay around and fight rather than going off to the battle that needed to be fought elsewhere. Charjabug dropped down, landing on one side of Clemont's feet while Chespin padded forward on the other.

"There's no time to argue this!" Clemont shouted, insisting that he get his point across. At this point, he decided he could afford the slight distraction, especially as Chespin sent a rocketing Pin Missile into the collected group of grunts. While it didn't do much to break their ranks, it at least kept them from ultimately interfering with the conversation going on. The inventor looked to Serena, who was staring at him with insistent eyes. "I'm sure there are a lot more of these guys at the altar, and we need to be ready in time for the coming dawn!"

"Greninja," Greninja agreed loudly, nodding his head. From where Clemont stood, it looked like Greninja was distracted mightily by something, possibly something to do with Ash. However, he still retained the presence of mind to be aware of the actual threat around them.

"I'll handle Plumeria, which will leave you guys with enough time to fight the rest of Team Skull," Clemont continued to explain to her, trying to send the message with his eyes. She seemed hesitant, no doubt wanting to stick with him. So, Clemont decided to put an end to the debate that appeared to be roiling in her mind, once and for all. "Team Skull is likely worthless without Guzma or Plumeria to guide them, so as long as I hold her here long enough for all of you to make your way, then we'll be good. There are too many of them right now to waste our time and energy in bringing her down."

"And what about you?" Hapu asked of Clemont. To that, he chuckled and adjusted his glasses. That was about all the answer he felt the need to give; he already had a plan for making sure he could deal with Plumeria entirely uninterrupted. Serena still looked apprehensive when Kahili sharply turned.

"Guess we won't be having our rematch after all," she snarked out to the opposite woman, smirking down at her. The disdain was so evident between the both of them that Clemont wasn't quite sure there was even anything else to say to either of the women. Maybe it was them being on opposite sides, or that they just held a grudge, Clemont couldn't really say definitively. However, looking between the two, it seemed to just be something shallow towards one another. "Toucannon, to me!"

"Toucaaaaaah!" The cry of Kahili's trusted Pokémon split the air, diving downward towards her. Clemont snapped his gaze towards it as a blue light burst all around it in a glorious hue. It suddenly snapped to the ground, leveling itself before flying off. It left a sudden burst of air behind that made Serena's skirt flutter and Clemont attempt to keep his balance by flinging his arms around wildly. Luxray emerged from his pokeball just to prop him up carefully. In that single moment, Toucannon's blast of wind from utilizing Brave Bird had sent the Skull grunts on the path forward diving to the side and tumbling in all directions.

"Let's get moving, yeah?" Kahili asked of the rest of her female companions. Skarmory's wings ruffled at her side, glowing a bright white as it took to the air threateningly. Some of the grunts were gathering, but Clemont was glad to see that most of his allies there had finally understood the need to move on. In particular, Hapu grabbed on to the other blonde woman that was there.

"Very well. Mudsdale, Heavy Slam!" Hapu roared. She dragged on the other one who appeared to be calling for her Pokémon, a Ribombee, to use Pollen Puff. Clemont didn't need to look in order to know the effects of that attack. He'd seen it more than enough times in the Battle Tree. Mudsdale charged forward powerfully, ramming into the mustering Skull grunts. At the same time, Skarmory gave a sharp cry and sliced through them. The path was clearing, but there were still more than enough to fill the canyon path.

"Go, Serena! I've got this!" Clemont screamed out. She clenched her fist, but eventually seemed to agree, looking to Braixen and beginning to run. Greninja was right at her side, nodding to Clemont, as if insisting that he'd leave the battle to him. Serena brushed past, and though she said nothing, he knew. They were here to win.

"You're not going  _anywhere_!" Plumeria shrieked angrily. Clemont snapped his attention right back to her within seconds, pointing his fingers forward as his body leaned a little over.

"Chespin, use Pin Missile!" he roared. Chespin bounded forward, his spines glowing white. He remained rooted in place as the attack then streaked out, the white-hot projectiles streaking with a powerful green glow for the top of the cliff. Plumeria and her Salazzle stepped back a bit, but others weren't as lucky. The projectiles struck the edge of the cliff, causing parts of it to crumble and send the Skull grunts tumbling. Clemont tossed his final pokeball out for Bunnelby to emerge. "Bunnelby, Luxray, get into the battle with Wild Charge on those surrounding us!"

"Salazzle, use Dragon Pulse!" Plumeria ordered. Salazzle bounded forward, not leaving the cliff. At her mouth formed the purple beam that fired off, looking like a raging dragon. Clemont quickly looked to see the others on the move, still within the thicket of their foes, making their way towards the altar. Realizing the attack was aiming for him, Clemont dodged the side, stomach hitting the stone floor, but his mind was whirling into action. Perhaps he wouldn't be able to defeat her, but all that mattered was holding her off as long as he could.

"Chespin, use Vine Whip to get up there!"

"Pin ches!" Chespin agreed. His vines snapped outward, latching themselves onto a low hanging branch before he pulled upwards. Clemont looked to Charjabug, who also angled his body and fired off a String Shot to the other side. Chespin had finally drawn level with Plumeria.

"Flamethrower! Burn it off!" she commanded. Salazzle whipped around with immense speed, opening her maw. The flames rocketed out for Chespin's vines, which were keeping him suspended in the air.

"Retract them, and into Rollout!" Clemont yelled. He pushed at the ground, bringing himself back to a standing position. Bunnelby and Luxray had met their targets, zapping through either side and launching the grunts into the air with a shower of electricity. Likewise, Chespin's vines snapped back in, barely avoiding the Flamethrower. He began to spin in midair, rolling up into a ball before shooting right for Salazzle. The Toxic Lizard Pokémon ceased her gushing flames right as Chespin nailed into her side with his attack. "And Spark!"

"Sala?" Salazzle gasped out, not having the time to avoid Charjabug coming at her other side. The bug whipped right around with his string, buzzing with all manner of electricity before he slammed into Salazzle powerfully.

"Dragon Pulse on that Chespin!" Plumeria ordered. Chespin had broken off, skirting along the cliff. Clemont moved his foot, looking to see if the others had even gotten close to clearing the area as of yet. They hadn't. On top of it, Salazzle was unhindered in firing off the purple draconic beam once more, this one looking like it was ready to consume the usually gluttonous Chespin. Then there were the clifftop grunts moving in.

"Vine Whip, and charge in with Body Slam!" Chespin wore a fierce expression as his vines snaked out and began whipping around in a frenzy, much like how Ash's Counter Shield would work. However, he didn't remain stationary, his body charging forward with a bright glow. The dragon continued to bear down on him, but he wasn't stopping. His vines snapped into the Skull grunts, driving some of them from the cliff while others were beaten back into the wall. Then he dove into the draconic beam, slowing down with almost every step, but finally making it to the Poison type. Chespin slammed into her and Salazzle was forced back towards her trainer.

"Like that's enough…you're not getting out of here alive! Flamethrower!"

"Charge Beam! Bunnelby, I need you to use Dig on the canyon wall, now!" Clemont cried. His loyal Pokémon bounced away as Luxray sent a collusion of exploding stars into the clustered group of enemies before them. Bunnelby reached the wall and began spinning, his powerful ears diving straight into the bedrock without concern. "We're not backing down, Plumeria. We  _will_  stop Guzma and Lusamine, and the Ultra Beasts with them!"

"Shut it," Plumeria snapped. The exploding electricity from Charjabug's blast met with the Flamethrower head on. Yellow and red mixed in with one another, an orb of energy forming that threatened to burst from the two colliding with one another. Plumeria stepped forward, the hatred beyond evident on her face. Clemont watched her for just a second, tracking the progress of Bunnelby while their Pokémon grappled. He couldn't figure out just what kind of hatred it was. "Push harder!"

"Ssssaaaaaa," Salazzle agreed, and the volume of flames expanded. Charjabug's attacks were no longer enough. The Flamethrower broke through, consuming Charjabug. Clemont grimaced, quickly checking to the side as Greninja flipped through the air to knock away some opponents. The other group was nearly there.

"Now, Chespin, lock it down with Pin Missile!" Clemont called. Luxray was keeping the other members of Team Skull away from him with an impressively sparking Thunder Fang, while Charjabug recovered above. Chespin fired the projectiles off in an almost endless stream, keeping Salazzle from moving while the ground underneath her feet was caving. He grinned. "Now, Bunnelby, come on out and use Wild Charge!"

"Bunnnnnel!" Bunnelby's cry split the air and he rocketed out from within the ground, body blazing with all manner of electricity as he surged forward, slamming right into Salazzle's midsection. She flew back, spinning through the air before landing on all fours with a hiss. Clemont flicked his eyes over as a Psyshock seemed to clear the path for his friends. They were home free, the rest of the grunts in their path falling away.

"Get it together, use Smog!" Salazzle hissed once more and this time a purple smoke began to puff out. It wasn't aiming for his Pokémon up above, however, but for him.

"I don't think so! Luxray, use Electric Terrain!" Clemont commanded, even throwing his fist into the air like Ash always did.

"Lux lux raaaaay!" Luxray howled. His body sparked viciously. Those sparks traveled outward, consuming the ground around him. The smog began to reach Clemont's level but burned off harmlessly from the sudden electricity that was covering the area. Even better, the shocks traveled along the ground powerfully, sending the Skull grunts into convulsions. Only Plumeria had a sense to leap up and grab a branch so as to not get shocked.

"You annoying brat…" she snickered out. It made him unsure if she was enjoying the battle or hating it. "Look what you've done. You've hurt my brothers and sisters."

"Only because you're all standing in our way," Clemont said, gazing at her as she dropped down to the now steaming ground. Some of the sparks were there, attracting to her shoes, but she was ultimately fine. "We wouldn't be doing this if you weren't trying to stop us from saving the world."

"Yeah? So it's all about you guys, huh? And what about  _our_  dream? Our boss's dream? Don't we matter?" Plumeria snapped out at him. Clemont pursed his lips, sighing just a little as he came to understand Plumeria's ultimate intentions.

"Of course, you do…but…that doesn't give you the right to hurt people!" Clemont shouted at her angrily. He felt full of rage, now, at the selfishness that Team Skull exuded on a daily basis. "If you really want to have your dreams succeed then stop trying to take them from others!"

"Oh, what would you know? You're clearly the lowest on the totem pole," Plumeria waved off angrily as she patted Salazzle on the head, her Z-Ring glinting in the moonlight. Clemont had to chuckle.

"You're right, I am," he answered after a moment of silence. "I can't compare with Ash or Serena. They're going places that maybe I could never reach…but, then again, I don't need to! Because I'm the Gym Leader of Lumiose City, Clemont! My role is to support those trainers, challenge them, test them. I don't need to be better them! I need to be  _there_  for them! That's what I learned  _on my own_  instead of being what everyone else told me to be!

"So, come on, Plumeria! Let's decide the future right now! Put everything we have on the line for what we can do. You want to save Guzma, and I want to save my world. Let's find out whose convictions are stronger."

"You're a stubborn idiot," Plumeria mocked at him, raising her wrist up and tapping on her Z-Ring, the device glowing purple in the receding moonlight. "You haven't been able to do a thing to me before, always the scared little boy. And don't forget that I have  _this_."

"Oh, I won't forget," Clemont said, almost smirking at the woman with confidence. It was the first time in so long that he had no trepidation in facing Plumeria. Salazzle's claw had been removed from his stomach and he could breathe again. He knew who he was, and what he could do. All of that was for supporting those around him. Clemont believed in them just as he believed in himself and what he could do.  _That_  was what he knew he had over Plumeria: he wasn't just what someone else told him he was, but what he had discovered for  _himself_. "I don't need a Mega Stone, or a Z-Ring. I'll beat you with just me and my Pokémon!"

"Chaja!" Charjabug seemed to agree emphatically from up top. Bunnelby and Chespin had moved to join the bug as it suddenly glowed a bright blue in the moonlight. Clemont had to grin; he'd read about the phenomenon of the magnetic field in Poni Canyon, yet he had never connected it with Charjabug. Now that he had, though, he watched as Charjabug grew much bigger, his blocky shape no longer there, instead replaced with two large mandibles, wings and little legs. The blue light burst but moments later, revealing the form of Vikavolt. "Vik! Vika!"

"Damn…" Plumeria said, not sounding too happy about the occurrence. "Salazzle, take it out with Sludge Wave!"

"Sazaa!" Salazzle cried again, plunging her hand on to the stone. A large orb of what looked like dark purple material surrounded Salazzle, undulating in and out. Then it broke like a dam and began to surge along the top of the canyon cliff. Clemont instantly snapped to attention.

"Bunnelby, Chespin, return to me down here! Vikavolt, dodge it and use Charge Beam!"

"Vikva!" Vikavolt cried. Bunnelby and Chespin grabbed ahold of each other and leapt off the cliff, even as Chespin panicked a little. The wave crashed into the wall on the other side, completely missing all three of its intended targets. Vikavolt was moving too, the orb of electricity forming between its mandibles powerfully, before firing out in a wide beam that struck Salazzle. She was slammed back, nailing her into the wall with amazing strength. Vikavolt's newfound strength, combined with the Electric Terrain, had changed the flow of battle.

"Now, Bunnelby, fire Mud Shot!" Clemont commanded, throwing his finger forward. Bunnelby touched to the ground, depositing Chespin there before twirling. The globules of mud all formed on his ears, and then fired upwards as Salazzle angled her head to send a roaring Flamethrower at Vikavolt. He dodged, flitting through the air like a mighty bullet that avoided the blow. The Mud Shot slammed into the flames, causing them to explode in the night air. Vikavolt was now flying over the canyon path with his speed. Clemont watched him, nodded at him as he realized what needed to be commanded. "Vikavolt, use Bug Buzz!"

"Vivivivivivi!" Vikavolt hummed out. He disappeared, suddenly reappearing right next to Plumeria and Salazzle. Red waves abruptly burst out from the Stag Beetle Pokémon. The trainer dropped to her knees, clasping at her ears, while Salazzle also seemed unable to move. Taking advantage of the situation, Clemont called for a Spark. Vikavolt's whole body blazed with electricity and then shot forward with the speed of a bullet, ramming into Salazzle and driving her against the wall before breaking off.

"Dragon Pulse!"

"Charge Beam!" The two Pokémon attacked at the same time, but their clash this time was much different than the last. The dragon soared outward from Salazzle's jaw, ready to gobble up whatever was coming its way. Vikavolt maintained some distance, firing the powerful Charge Beam out that collided with it. They met, but didn't hold. Instead, their matched powers ripped outward with a powerful explosion immediately upon collision. Salazzle was driven back to the wall yet again and Vikavolt almost flew back across the canyon. Plumeria, on the other hand, seemed to have underestimated the strength of that force, for she was suddenly pitched off of the canyon walls. "Use String Shot to catch her!"

"No way! Flamethrower!" Plumeria shouted. Vikavolt moved a little faster, zipping across the canyon at tremendous speed, almost like a blur, as he made a hammock of strings between the canyon walls that Plumeria fell on to, becoming swiftly wrapped up within it. Salazzle acted seconds later. She had reached the edge of the cliff and sent the flames roaring into it without remorse. One of the edges of the strings snapped from the heat and Plumeria dropped, landing with a rather feral expression on her face, some strings hanging from her hair. She quickly tore them away with a scowl. Salazzle dropped seconds later as Vikavolt and all the others returned to Clemont's side. "Honestly…this is the reason I hate complications. You never know which way they can go. I'm done playing with you. Sludge Wave!"

"Bunnelby, make a trench! Vikavolt, counter it with Charge Beam!" If Plumeria was surprised that he wasn't panicking in the least, she wasn't showing it, but for a minute twitch of her lips. Salazzle was once more surrounded in the dark purple that then fired out. Bunnelby was on the move, digging through the stone that gave way under Clemont's feet, allowing him and the other landlocked individuals to drop down. Vikavolt was, meanwhile, spinning down from above as he fired a Charge Beam right on to Salazzle's head. It exploded, sending shocks along the ground.

"Nail that thing with Dragon Pulse, come on, Salazzle," Plumeria ordered, sounding tired and thoroughly annoyed. Salazzle tracked Vikavolt's fast movements, turning this way and that. She opened her maw and another of the purple draconic beams formed before spluttering out into the open air. It was soon followed by another and another, until it looked like a giant three headed dragon, barreling right for Vikavolt.

"Bug Buzz!" Clemont called out. Vikavolt stopped, and the red waves and loud buzzing, that would have been painful to any other, sounded out. Plumeria held her ground this time; in fact, she was looking to end it, judging from the way she was crossing her fists. Clemont's eyes narrowed, pulling himself out of the trench. She was using a Z-Move…but he wouldn't let her. "We're not going to let her use that move! Bunnelby, Luxray, use Wild Charge! Chespin, Rollout! Vikavolt, Spark!"

"You can't stop this! We're going to the future that our boss has chosen! One where we're not just the losers of this world!" Plumeria shouted out angrily. Her arms were being brought to her sides. Clemont wouldn't take it, though. His Pokémon surged forward, rolling or brimming with electricity while they converged on Salazzle, who was beginning to glow with the power of a Z-Move.

"You can change that here and now, though!" Clemont cried out. Plumeria's body was moving in accordance with the Poison type Z-Move, and Clemont still wasn't quite there. The light was bursting, reaching its deadly zenith…and then his Pokémon all slammed into Salazzle. "You can't change anything by going to another world! You're still you! You have to believe in what  _you_ can do! Maybe it's not the same as others, and maybe it's just a small piece of something bigger, but it's still  _something_!"

"Shut! Up!" Plumeria said as the bright light exploded outward. Clemont reached her, and without hesitation, drove his fist right into her face. She flew backwards, her back slamming on to the canyon floor with a groan. The blast of electricity from all of his Pokémon's combined attacks upon the Toxic Lizard Pokémon also shuddered out, exploding upwards into the air. Salazzle spun through the air, smoking with a foam at her mouth. She slammed with finality upon the ground.

"Believe in yourself, not what others tell you to believe in," Clemont declared, slamming down on the ground with his foot as Plumeria struggled to stand. She looked surprised at Salazzle's defeat, hand shaking as she recalled her to her pokeball. "If you want to have a better future, and to save Guzma, then you need to do it yourself. This other world won't help you. It'll only hurt."

There was a long standoff between them, fraught with silence as Plumeria began to stand shakily. She stowed her pokeball away, gripping another as she stared at Clemont with wide eyes. It was like seeing something that wasn't there before; a strength and confidence that Clemont, himself, never thought he would possess. Yet here he stood. Finally, after a long moment, Plumeria tossed her other pokeball high, revealing a Crobat. "No. We  _will_  save our boss and his future. We…we have to…"

"Plumeria!" Clemont cried out, but the woman wasn't listening. Crobat flapped down, grabbing ahold of Plumeria's back and beginning to speed off towards the site of the battle that was taking place at the altar. Clemont groaned, returning Bunnelby and Chespin. "We have to hurry! If she interferes with the others, we might not succeed!"

"Luxray!" Luxray barked out, hunkering down for Clemont to quickly mount him. He did so, and without another moment's hesitation, they were speeding off through the canyon once again, Vikavolt blitzing alongside him with a miniscule buzzing. He wasn't sure if he'd broken through to Plumeria whatsoever, the woman and the rest of Team Skull seemingly so determined for their better world to not listen to reason, but he wasn't going to let her interfere in doing what needed to be done.

"Faster!" Clemont cried out. Over in the sky, it almost seemed to be lightening, showing that they had been battling for quite the length of time, and yet they hadn't realized it even once. Sunrise would no doubt be approaching soon.

Flitting through the canyon's caves and passages, Clemont attempted to keep Plumeria in his sights, hoping to catch up with her before she could manage to turn the tide of battle that was happening up ahead. At the very least, he definitely knew that it was happening from the loud and discordant sounds that were filling the air sharply. He could swear that he heard Silvally roaring and Crabrawler punching through things. It was growing brighter, too, like they were approaching an area that could gather more light. Clemont patted Luxray's side, urging him onward as they were approaching the mouth of the cave that would finally lead them to the altar they had been searching for.

"Braixen, Hidden Power!" Serena's voice was yelling, long before they even caught a sight of her. Clemont looked up towards Vikavolt and all of a sudden, felt something shudder through him. Luxray skidded to a stop and Clemont dismounted. He looked back and realized that they had passed through the barrier that had encompassed the altar. In fact, he and all of his surrounding Pokémon were glowing with the benevolent light that came off of the Z-Crystal in his pocket. He smiled. His theory had proven to be true, and he really couldn't be happier about it.

"Silvally, Multi-Attack!" Silvally let out a roar that appeared to precede a rather powerful attack, if the exaggerated screaming from some Team Skull grunts meant anything.

"Yo! This ain't cool! They're like, totally super strong, yo!" one of the grunts cried out, not yet in view.

"That's okay, bro! We got, like, numbers and stuff!"

"Yeah! Big Boss is waitin' on the other side! Ain't that right, Big Sis?" asked another one. It was proof that Plumeria had arrived at the site of the battle and was already busy entering into things. What did surprise him were the grunt's next confused words. "Big Sis? What're ya doin'?"

"Dedenne, Nuzzle," Bonnie said, almost callously. Clemont shook his head as quite a few grunts gave off shrieks, including the one that had just finished speaking. He turned the corner and emerged outwards. Right before him was the location of their pursuit at long last. A grand staircase, crumbled slightly with the ages stood before them, leading to what seemed to be a mighty construct, like a temple, at the very top. Rather, it was an altar, and Plumeria was running for it, though she seemed to have been slowed down. Crobat was gone and she had nearly collapsed at the foot of the stairs that led to the altar, looking panicked.

Though, Clemont wasn't sure who  _should_  have been more panicked. Sure, they were about to reach the altar, yet before them was an entire swirling sea of Skull grunts. They didn't look terribly coordinated, and their admin appeared to not even care much for them at the moment, but just seeing her also seemed to embolden them. One of them was even moving in on Bonnie, who whipped around and ordered for Squishy to take them down. In seconds, Squishy had emerged from the bag, coalescing green lights flowing into him before he turned to his dog-like form and sent the grunt flying with a high-speed strike.

"Nice one, Bonnie! Incineroar, finish 'em!" Hau exclaimed cheerily, though the sharpness of his eyes belied how serious he was taking this. Clemont could see his Incineroar diving forward, right alongside Pipi as they crashed into the mess of Skull grunts. Seconds later, Lillie ordered for a Yawn and Komala created the large bubble that put a substantial number of the enemy to sleep. She darted for Bonnie, grabbing the girl carefully, and the two blondes nodded, beginning to run for the altar.

"About time you got here, Clemont!" Lionel's voice called back to him. Clemont nodded, but kept facing forward. The trio that was comprised of Lillie, Bonnie and Hau were already cutting a swathe through the Skull members before them, aiming straight for the altar, where Plumeria was. Yet, outside of their path, it seemed like the uncoordinated, but heavily numerous, enemy was continuing to swell and grow.

"I had something to take care of," Clemont shouted over the din of battle. He looked down to Luxray and nodded. The Gleam Eyes Pokémon nodded and went charging straight into the mess of grunts before him with a Wild Charge. Vikavolt joined right in with Spark, sending a wave of electricity down the line that practically split the groupings of their foes in half.

"Well, glad you're finally here, for all the good it might do. This keeps up and we'll have to be sending Lillie into the Ultra Space alone!" Lionel snapped, punching and hitting a female grunt that was aiming for him. She collapsed, while some of her compatriots suddenly flew into the air from Bewear whirling around wildly with a cackling Jessie. Lionel sighed and dug into his pocket, taking out what looked to be a flare. "I was waiting for us all to gather, but…I don't think we can delay."

Clemont didn't really pay attention to him, already trying to dash down the split sea of grunts. Behind him, though, he heard the noise of the flare being fired like a signal. Clemont wasn't even sure if it would work, considering he'd only loosely been involved in any sort of planning process the last month. Regardless, he pushed on, ignoring his usual shortness of breath to approach the altar as quickly as he could. Soon, he came even with the other trio, though his sights were set on Plumeria, a quarter of the way up the stairs.

"Whoa! He looks so cool, Clemont!" Bonnie cheered out. Rotom suddenly zipped around her head.

"Rotom is surprised that Bonnie did not call it cute."

"Yeah, it's that, too," Bonnie said with a grin, though it seemed more to annoy Rotom than anything else. Lillie let off a nervous chuckle, but Clemont wasn't yet ready to oblige his sister with any comments about his Vikavolt. He just put a foot on the stairs and charged upwards. Plumeria heard them, turning around again.

"Vikavolt, stop her with String Shot!" Clemont ordered. Vikavolt was certainly the fastest, moving like a blur as the string shot forward on to Plumeria's leg. She tripped and tumbled face-first on to the stairs. His loyal Bug type reeled her in as Clemont stepped close and suddenly grabbed her by the arm. "Stop it, right now!"

"Let go," Plumeria said darkly, almost like there was a touch of threat behind it. However, Clemont wasn't going to budge, holding her there. They stared at each other, one struggling against the other, and Clemont could see desperation in her eyes. She wanted to reach the Ultra Space, to see Guzma again, because of how much she believed in him. It couldn't change the fact, though, that she was fighting a fruitless battle. "You can't win. We can't let you."

"Well,  _we_  can't let  _you_  win," Lillie said with determination. Plumeria looked over to her, as if utterly surprised to see her standing there so confidently. That seemed to make some of her own confidence erode away and they all remained locked in a standoff for a second, unsure of what to really say, even if the sounds of battle around them ensured there was no lack of noise.

They didn't need to say anything, in the end, because anything they would have said was replaced by an amalgamation of roars. Clemont snapped his gaze upward, right alongside his sister, seeing the domed shield that wrapped around the altar glitter in the lightening sky. There wasn't just the shield though, because people and Pokémon were streaming inward. So many things happened at once, Clemont realized, as they were stopped upon the steps of the altar. Plumeria yelled for Team Skull to converge on the altar; Lillie turned to proceed the rest of the way, and from above came a black Charizard, and a Salamence, and a bevy of helicopters with the League emblem emblazoned on the side. Reinforcements had arrived.

* * *

Ash wasn't entirely sure how long he had been sitting there, his knees close to his chest as he began to shiver almost uncontrollably. He felt almost empty inside, like there was truly nothing left. Never before had he thought it would hurt so much, and at the thought of it, his nails dug into his lower legs, driving into them with trepidation. He knew he had to get up, move forward, but while his body was willing, his mind was staying rooted in place.

He fell back, though, laying right in the middle of the canyon's pass, his arms breaking away from his knees and spreading out. It reminded him of his time in the Winding Woods, feeling broken after his efforts there. Only this time, he knew Serena wouldn't be there to snap him out of his funk. There were no snowballs to throw. No one was going to come and find him. He was alone, and he was nothing. A sigh spiraled from his lips, frosting in the air as it traveled upwards. The stars were growing dimmer as night seemed to be drawing to its close.

_Never give up until the very end! Nothing we do is a waste!_  Those words echoed in his brain, and forced him to sit up, grabbing at his backpack once again. They sounded so simple to say, and he supposed he should listen to them. That's what he was doing, right? Even with questions, he continued to move forward, knowing it would bring him  _somewhere_. Now, though, he had to wonder: did it even mean anything, anymore? That didn't hurt as much as his earlier realization, though, and it was more an afterthought tacked onto everything else surrounding it.

Ash finally forced himself to stand, slinging the bag back over his shoulders. He took a step forward, and found that he was able to move, after all. It started off as sluggish movements, almost like baby steps, but soon turned into a slow walk. He didn't want to run fast or anything; rushing ahead never got him anywhere. At least he'd learned that, hadn't he? His experiences had seemed to teach him  _something_. The only problem was that those "somethings" seemed to do nothing for his ultimate goal in any way shape or form.

He could practically hear Serena chastising him in his head. All their promises to one another about how they would never give up after everything they had suffered seemed so baseless, now. Ash closed his eyes, another growl piercing through the air. He held no pain in his stomach, though; it was only embedded deep within his heart. "I'm sorry…"

He didn't stumble this time, starting to mumble those words over and over again. No one could hear them, but his apologies couldn't stop falling. He was sorry to Serena that he was filled with this despair and brokenness. That he wasn't the person she always looked at him as. Maybe she never expected it of him, loving him for him, but he didn't even know who he was, so that she loved him was baffling and almost encouraging. Yet it also brought tears to him. That Serena could love someone so flawed, lost and broken…His tears dropped, not even close to audible as they hit the stone, proving almost how empty they and he were.

He was sorry to his friends, the ones that had stuck by him in each region, only to see him fail. Yet they never forsook him, always wanting the very best for him. Knowing that he had that support despite never living up to the wishes they had for him drove the pain deeper into his heart.

He was sorry to his parents. His mother had supported him so much over the years, wanting him to chase after his dream. She'd never questioned it, and always cheered him on, and here, he was really starting to feel he wasn't worth it. His dream was worthless. Then there was his father, for such a short time that he had gotten to know him, believing he was a Pokémon Master. That stung deep inside him. His father had thought so highly of him, believed he had long obtained his dream, yet he hadn't. He wasn't even close.

He was sorry, most of all, however, to his Pokémon. They had truly been through his side for everything: loss, victory, hope, despair and everything in between. They had seen the best of him and the worst of him, yet none had abandoned him for even a second…well, unless one counted some of the unruliness that Charizard had had back in the day. Still, once he'd earned that loyalty, it was undying. Yet, he had led them all so aimlessly.

He wanted to find them.

His feet continued along the path, the rippling pools of water trickling alongside him. The content of the air felt to have changed, as though it were less stale or damp. Maybe it was just planning to open up into a wider space. Ash didn't know, but he was starting to not care. Why was he still doing this trial? What would it matter if he completed it? Yes, nothing they did was a waste of time, but if, in the end, you walked away with nothing, and remained as nothing, then the very thing you had done was pointless. Ash gritted his teeth and slammed a hand against the wall of the canyon, causing some of the rocks to shudder and his hand to bleed from the jagged edges.

"This isn't me…is it…?" he asked to no one, walking forward, slowly, again. Of course, asking something like that just reminded him he barely had a "me" to begin with. Guzma's taunting words rested in his head.  _How can I take anythin' from someone who's nothin'? Ya don't even know yerself._  Ash's hand clenched into a fist and he suddenly stopped walking, his footsteps loud as they entered in to what felt like such a brightly lit area, regardless of all the arches draped over the surroundings. He breathed in, steadying himself from everything that was sending him reeling.

_Promise me you won't give in to despair._  Ash's body locked up, Zinnia's words coming back to him from a life that seemed ever so long ago. He  _had_  promised, hadn't he? And after everything, he thought he had succeeded in overcoming it. He didn't let his despair rule him the way it had Zinnia, Dalton, and even Michael. Even now, it was controlling those like Guzma and Lusamine. But he wasn't them! He couldn't give in! He'd made a promise!

His head turned, noticing the lone, large pool that was situated in the midst of the larger area. He walked towards it, his feet moving with a mind of their own as the growling returned in an almost sinister fashion. Stopping at the edge of it, he looked down. Still the same reflection, but it felt more substantiated, not like it was going to fade in and out with every passing ripple. Ash closed his eyes again, unable to figure out why he was seeing this. Was it that this was him? Had he never changed? Or…

A sudden glow to the side caught his eye and Ash looked over, noticing a pale blue light over in the distance. He straightened himself, looking straight at it, and soon noticed the familiar and intricate carvings on the podium there. They were just like so many of those seen at the trial sites, ones that held the various Z-Crystals. Ash stepped towards it, his backpack dropping from his shoulders. It was almost funny, he thought, as he took a step towards the glowing podium. Here he had questioned why he was doing all of this. Questioning what he even was, when all of a sudden, the objective of his search had appeared. His hand reached out, hesitatingly, wondering if he was worth taking it, but he didn't make it. His legs gave out all of a sudden, and Ash fell to his knees for a single moment.

"I…can't do it…" he breathed out. No one was there to listen, but he continued to speak. "I can't reach my dream with this. I…I want to be a Pokémon Master, but I don't know why! I don't know what it is! I don't know how completing this trial can help me! Why am I even here? ! What am I doing? ! But…there has to be an answer, right? I have to have done  _something_  the right way, right?"

The cold canyon walls offered no response to his questions that were searching deep inside of himself, causing him to despair. No, he couldn't let it! Ash stood shakily, putting one foot in front of the other, determined to grab the crystal, reunite with his Pokémon, and then his friends. The growling sounded once more, closer than ever before. A pause entered into Ash's steps; how could his growling stomach move  _closer_? Unless…

Ash's head snapped upward, and just in time. He jumped back as something slammed into the space between himself and the pedestal that was there. Dust was stirred all around it and chunks of stone flew off into the walls. The whole area trembled and shook, ruffling Ash's hair and sending his hat flying into his backpack. His body tensed as he waited, watching until the dust cleared at last.

"Kommohhhhh…" the Totem Pokémon growled out, for it was obvious that that was what it was. Larger in stature than his own Kommo-o, the Totem Pokémon towered over him like an ominous force that was standing in his way, barring all access, it's orange pulsing aura feeling all too palpable in the air around them. Ash could hear its shuddering breath, and could feel his own body shaking. It was a mountain; a source of strength so huge that it barred the path in more ways than one. The Totem Pokémon raised its hand silently, beckoning him to step forth and fight.

Ash wasn't sure what to do. He had nothing to fight with. No Pokémon were by his side, after all. Yet, staring the creature deep into its eyes, he could see that he had absolutely no choice. The Totem Pokémon would not take no for an answer. It was here to test him, or crush him…he wasn't sure which. Knowing this, Ash raised his fists up, prepared to fight as best as he could. "Let's do this…"

"Kom," the Totem Pokémon growled. Ash sprinted forward as the creature's arms glowed white hot. It punched at Ash, but he ducked and jabbed for its side, remembering the training he had received from Kahili about both himself and Kommo-o. The fist impacted with the creature's scales and sent pain rippling through his entire arm as he screamed. The Pokémon's fist came screaming out, punching Ash in his stomach. He could have sworn he felt a rib break as he was tossed into the air forcefully.

"N-no…" Ash gasped out as he hit the ground, rolling along it painfully. Something was definitely broken, but he couldn't be sure what. He pushed up on the ground as the Totem stalked forward, silently and slowly. Ash kicked his leg out, hoping to unbalance the enemy before him. It did nothing, though, merely getting trapped against his opponent's leg. The Totem refused to budge. Its tail swung out now, glowing green as it slammed across his entire figure and threw him back right before another glowing fist punched him clear across the area. Ash gagged. He couldn't fight this. Not without them. It was too strong. His vision was fading.

Why did it want to fight him? Why was he feeling such pain? What was it all for? His vision sparked and he looked at the Totem, its eyes blank.  _Of course…you're testing me…you're…_

Ash hit the water once more, spiraling through, something connecting to his finger yet again. Yet when his eyes snapped open, it wasn't gold…but blue.  _A blue ribbon…_

"Pikapi!" Ash heard Pikachu's voice, and he twisted around. There was no flash of lightning this time. He didn't see any of that. Just two figures, cloaked in sunlight as a rainbow passed overhead. They just stared at each other, accepting one another.  _Understanding_  one another. Ash's eyes widened. Had that been it, all along? He raised his hand out, and bubbles appeared to form in front of him, each containing a memory inside.

He battled Gary, and they put the pill that had turned their friendship bitter to rest. He'd battled alongside Charizard and had come to earn his respect. He had battled Paul, finally settled the divide between them. Clemont, Sawyer, Seamus, Alain…All of them were those he battled. Those he'd come to understand. How Sawyer had looked up to him. How different Paul was, yet how similar. How Alain strode after strength to protect the ones that mattered.

And then, there was Jangmo-o, the thought of the Totem he had just been facing bubbling up. That single memory became so sharp. How he had fought Jangmo-o, and came to understand him. His fears. His strength. His foibles. His pain. Just from battling, he could understand that other Pokémon, and then, in time, help him pull out his highest potential. It wasn't even about being there every day, but from the battle alone…understanding and bringing out that greatest strength. It was finally all so obvious to him, just because of that one day; the day it all began.

"Pikachu!" Ash cried, tears falling from his eyes without thinking. He began to run forward, feet treading against the endless water as he tried to reach him. It had all begun that very day. He understood Pikachu because he had fought and argued with him, and then alongside him. From that moment, they moved together. It wasn't about winning or losing or anything else, but about the journey before him. He wanted to  _understand_. He wanted to help them  _grow_. "Pikachu!"

"Pikapi!" Pikachu cried out in the vision and Ash could see clearer. Someone was holding on to him, wearing a smile on her face. It was one that was encouraging, and not the cold disdain it had held before.  _Serena!_  Around her were so many others. All the people he had met on his journey. Those he had influenced and had been influenced by in turn. Professor Oak's words from his birthday party came back to him: "if you hadn't done so much and met so many people, why, I don't think there'd be much of a party".

It all made sense! He was himself! He didn't need to be anything different! Maybe he was nothing; maybe he was still that very same boy that had left Pallet Town so long ago, but that didn't matter in the slightest; it was  _himself_  that had drawn so many others to him, had allowed him to understand and change so many lives. Nothing anyone else said mattered at all, because, in that moment, he knew that was his very  _dream_. The answer had always been there!  _I'm battling because I want to get to know people and Pokémon…I want to have fun with them, know their pain, their happiness…everything! I want to help them all grow, until they've filled me so much that I burst into_ their _lives!_

All too suddenly, that very same meaning flooded him elsewhere. The trials all made sense. How he had come to understand a natural order of things. The power of teamwork. The difference in opposing sides. How even if battle was a way to understand Pokémon, it wasn't the only way. Even how places long since abandoned could be a place for Pokémon of all kind! The trials had led him there! They had led him to understanding the Pokémon that were there, and understanding the captains that knew this! The trials, with this one realization, finally had  _meaning_.

Ash gasped loudly, now reaching his hand forward for Pikachu and Serena, tied to them by that blue ribbon. All of the others, the forms of his other friends, companions and Pokémon alike, moved in towards him, but instead of feeling like he was suffocating, he was enveloped in their warmth and their light. They were all laying a hand on him, especially those that mattered the most. Finally, he could achieve solace from all of them, their expectations and what they made of him being an encouragement rather than a chain, because he knew who  _he_  was, all on his own. He embraced them, taking them and their essence into him like little orbs of light.

_That_  was what it meant to be a Pokémon Master.

It wasn't about winning every battle, or even winning a League and becoming a Champion. That was just a stepping stone to battle others higher above, one he would complete regardless, just to understand more about them in every single way. Grow closer to them and their Pokémon. Protect all of them. Bring out the very best in them. Move towards the future. He could feel it and know. In some way, he already  _was_  a Pokémon Master, but couldn't have been until he understood that very point. Now, he did.  _That_  was his dream. And finally, at long last, he knew what it was, how to obtain it, because he could with every single step forward from here on.

He understood  _himself_  most of all.

Another gasp exuded from his lips as Ash suddenly flung himself out of the water. His body was still aching, broken in places, but he nevertheless trudged out, sopping wet yet feeling warmth instead of a chill. He was breathing heavily, but wearing a smile on his face. He looked up to the Totem Pokémon, still standing there like a giant mountain, and continued to smile as it breathed down upon him. Then, without warning, Ash dropped to his knees, but not out of despair.

"He's right," Ash said aloud, hoping that the Totem could hear him clearly and understand. "I  _am_  nothing; nothing more than me, just like I've always been."

"Kommo…" the Totem growled out, observing him just a moment longer as Ash finally brought himself to stand shakily before the creature.

"I am me," he said confidently, raising a fist as he did so. "I'm Ash. And Ash is…Ash. Nothing more, and nothing less. And that's okay."

"Moh…" it growled again, and it finally seemed to raise its fist, like it was prepared to land the killing blow. Ash just stood there, not even looking up at it, but retaining his smile. Finally, he threw his head up and shouted.

"My name is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town! I am a Pokémon Master!" he screamed. The Totem hesitated, allowing Ash to say the only thing he needed to say. "I'm a Pokémon Master, because I  _understand_  who  _I_  am! And…because I can understand… _you_ …

"So, come at me! I'll understand everything about you and never lose my way! That's  _my_  dream and my source of strength! Let's go!"

"Kommo!"

"Chuuuuuuuuuu!" The Thunderbolt ripped through the air, searing forth and impacting with the creature that was about to hit him. Its body convulsed, stepping back with mighty shudders. Ash turned in the direction of the lightning, tears flinging away from his eyes with a smile. He didn't need to look to know, yet seeing them there lightened his heart and confirmed everything he had realized in his mind. They wouldn't have been there otherwise.

"Everyone!" Ash cried out at the sight of his Pokémon all standing there, looking ready for a round of battle.

"Kooroo!" Decidueye called, already forming his ghostly arrow, ready for the battle ahead. Toucannon was atop his head, spreading her wings wide.

"Lycrrr!" Lycanroc growled, pawing at the ground with ferocity. Next to her were Passimian and Kommo-o, both showing no fear, acknowledging each other with nods. Landing in front of them was Pikachu, wearing a grin on his face as the Totem Pokémon recovered.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu cried out, running forward to meet him. Ash caught him in his arms as all of his other Pokémon returned to his side, nearly jumping upon him in a whole group. He laughed, gripping them all with him. Pikachu, in particular, nuzzled against him.

"I'm sorry, you guys. You must have been worried," he said calmly, quietly. None of them responded with any trepidation, though they did get off of him in order to face the Totem, who was quickly gaining its second wind. Its scales were falling away, though, like it was some ancient creature that would break at a touch. "I lost myself, you guys, and it must have worried you, but there's nothing to worry about now!"

"Pichu!" Pikachu agreed, pumping his fist. Ash felt a heat around his Z-Ring, watching it shine with a bright golden glow, like his feelings had started manifesting themselves into that very spot. Ash grinned. His Pokémon had stuck by his side because he understood them, and because they understood him…and they'd move forward together to understand others. That was his strength and his self and his dream and everything that mattered.

"Then, will you all fight with me, one more time?" He didn't need to hear their exuberant cries to know their answers. Ash stepped back a moment, noticing his hat upon the ground, but Pikachu got there first, picking it up with his head where it fit snugly. He laughed.

"KOMMO!" the Totem Pokémon roared out, its body glowing red as it prepared to strike them all down. Wind blasted through the area, but Ash grinned. He knew its purpose there and what it was fighting for, and he wouldn't back down. He swung his arm out, the glowing Z-Ring with it.

"Let's go! Decidueye, lock it in place with Spirit Shackle!" Ash called out, clasping a fist. Decidueye was on the move, vanishing into the shadows as it fired out an arrow from within. The object circled around the Totem and ghostly chains appeared, like it was locking in place. "Kommo-o, Passimian, hit it with Close Combat and Poison Jab!"

"Passi!" Passimian cried, rushing forward at the same speed as Kommo-o for the two to reach their target. Their fists flew out in a blinding flurry, striking at the Totem's exposed midsection and pummeling it mercilessly. The creature's arms glowed brightly and came swinging downward.

"Block it! Toucannon, Feather Dance and Beak Blast! Lycanroc, get close with Accelerock and then use Thunder Fang!" His other two Pokémon quickly joined the fray. Both Passimian and Kommo-o crossed their arms to block the burdening blow from the Totem. Feathers fell around the creature and its knees seemed to sink lower. Lycanroc was dashing forward with incredible speed, straight around to its back, where she slammed into it. Then her maw opened wide, charging up with electricity that chomped on to its jangling tail. Toucannon struck, slamming into the Totem's head and causing an explosion. "Now, Pikachu! Iron Tail!"

"Chuuuu pika!" Pikachu cried, leaping forward, with his hat still upon his head. He spun around and swiped upward with his glowing tail towards the creature's jaw, causing the Totem to snap back. Lycanroc's own sparks joined in, sending a sensation of paralysis up its spine as it began to whip the creature around. Soon, the others all joined in, Passimian and Kommo-o using their arms while Decidueye and Toucannon grabbed the tail by the talons and began to swing it around mercilessly while it cried out. His Z-Ring was white hot now as Pikachu skidded to his side.

"Pikachu," Ash said to his most trusted partner, looking back at him, "thanks for sticking by my side all these years. We're a great team, you know? And no matter what, we're going to battle lots more trainers and Pokémon, so that we can get to know all of them and see everything there is to life and share just a little bit of us with them, the same way you've shared with me!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu agreed. The light from Ash's Z-Ring burst now and he saw the Electrium-Z on the surface suddenly begin to mutate and change form. It felt like it was whispering to him, and Ash brought his wrists up, crossing them.

"Because we're the best partners, and we've been Pokémon Masters from the day we met each other! We just couldn't have truly been that until we figured it all out like now. Let's win more battles, so that we know more! Together!" Ash proclaimed. The burden and question on his soul had lifted as he brought his fists out. Pikachu leapt upward and they slammed their fists against one another before Pikachu slapped his tail around on his palm. His best friend landed and they punched forward. The light from the Z-Ring encapsulated Pikachu with even more power than before. His other Pokémon finally heaved the Totem, sending it flying into the air as Pikachu leapt upward, supported by the Z-Power. "TEN MILLION VOLT THUNDERBOLT!"

Pikachu was surrounded by electricity, more stunning than any before. It encapsulated his body, made the air rumble with thunder and lightning despite no storms overhead. Pikachu was in direct command of this space, all of the sparks in the air now belonged to him. "Pi-ka-ka-ka…Pika pika!"

It was a brilliant light. The voltage from Pikachu blasted outward in numerous streams and lightning bolts. They were all different colors, but all of them were hurtling for the exact same target: the Totem. They streaked through the air like a rainbow, almost like the one made from Ho-oh that Ash and he had seen on their very first day together. It made so much sense, especially as the orbs and bolts impacted with their opponent. For a second, all was silent, and then the lightning ripped through the air, shaking the very canyon itself and eroding a piece of wall that was there. It stretched to the sky in a brilliant rainbow color that seemed to almost split the heavens, the surge rather palpable in the air, itself.

Then it ended, and Pikachu fell back down, caught in Ash's arms. He took his hat from his beloved Pokémon and placed it on his head while the Totem fell down. In seconds, it slammed upon the ground, though the shuddering wasn't nearly as much as what Pikachu had just caused. Ash looked to his Z-Ring, noticing how different the crystal looked now before it disappeared inside.

"Lyca!" Lycanroc barked out suddenly, padding forward to grab Ash's attention. He looked towards his gathered Pokémon, but then followed their gazes to the sight of the Totem, collapsed on the ground. Its very body was fading away into dust, almost like it was nothing more than an ancient incarnation. Once the dust faded, all it left behind was a blue glow that was its Z-Crystal, seemingly removed from its pedestal, and a scale that was shaped like a wedge for the Trial Amulet. Ash stepped forward, and in seconds was bending down to get it as light broke over the top of the canyon walls.

Then he smiled, peace settling in his mind and heart, at last.

The sun had risen. A new day had begun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So, this chapter…this is everything I've been building towards for Ash's character for 60 chapters. Personally, I feel it's my best work if we're looking chapter-wise, and I hope that you'll all see it the same way. In case it doesn't make sense, though I think it does: Ash finally recognized that he was, in some way, nothing. His accomplishments didn't matter in the end, because he was still the same person that set off from Pallet Town. If you take away everyone else's expectations, and how they changed, that's who he was. From there, he also realized that he never changed in what he wanted: to be friends with Pokémon and battle lots of trainers. This is the core of his dream, by my estimation. Winning a League facilitates him to get to know others better, but what he really wants to do is battle and understand those he battles, and by doing that, it makes him a Pokémon Master, because he can give and receive in equal measure to all those who come in contact with him. However, he truly couldn't be a Pokémon Master so long as he didn't understand this about himself. The whole idea, of course, was that the answer was there the whole time; Ash just had to find it. I hope it all works for you, despite it simply being my interpretation, because this was building for me the whole time…
> 
> Otherwise, we had a big moment with Clemont here, in his confrontation with Plumeria. I rather liked writing that as well, particularly after what Clemont has been struggling with. I don't know, it just felt great to write, especially with what happened to Ash. In other words: this was the culmination. Every one of the heroes has changed and realized their issues, moving past them officially. They've found who they are. I hope you all loved and enjoyed it.
> 
> We're soon to enter some of the final phases of the journey, but there're still quite a few things left to go through, including the battle at the Altar of the Sunne! So, until next time, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	10. A Recovery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, I will not talk about the recent news…mostly because my opinion is quite plain over Twitter. Instead, let's focus on the realization that the last 9 chapters all took place in 24 hours. On to Chapter 10!

Chapter 10

A Recovery

A guttural scream tore from Plumeria's throat, and Clemont was barely able to lean back, away from her fierce uppercut. Unfortunately, the strike made him lose his balance and he began to fall down the stairs, caught by Bonnie and Squishy holding him up (with Rotom attempting to for all of a second, but failing). He grinned at them with some exertion as his sister tried to push him up carefully. Hau bounded forward, throwing his hand out to grab ahold of Clemont's hands. He then pulled him further upwards, but the clear distraction from the chaos that was going on around them was enough for Plumeria.

"Crobat, Air Cutter!" she snapped, flipping her legs straight up into the air.  _This woman just doesn't give up, does she?_  Clemont found himself thinking. Blades of air came cutting through the surroundings, revealing that Crobat had been flapping high up above and now descended. Those blades cut straight through the string binding the Skull admin, freeing Plumeria's legs. Lillie stood on the steps, mind clearly wavering between helping with Plumeria or continuing on a mad dash to the top of the altar. She decided fairly quickly.

"Komala, use Wood Hammer," she commanded. Like always, Komala detached from Lillie's arm, swinging his green glowing chunk of wood around to slam Plumeria in the back and send her tumbling back down the stairs. "Sorry, but I can't let you stop us."

"You go, Lillie!" Hau cheered, pumping his fist, though his eyes were shifting downward, showing where his mind was truly focusing. Clemont finally regained his balance in time for Plumeria to tumble down at his feet. Behind him, Bonnie had dug into her bag, taking out the Sun Flute. Clemont felt like they were encapsulated in that little space for a moment, despite everything going on around them. He briefly looked back to see Serena flipping to the side, her skirt flaring out while Braixen whacked a grunt on the head with her wand and Greninja dashed through with his white blades. Gladion also seemed to be involved, gripping his Z-Ring, which was changing colors alongside Silvally. It was something the inventor cataloged for later.

"Lillie, go!" Bonnie screamed. Clemont barely stepped out of the way, in time for his sister to take the object in her hands and toss it right for Lillie. He had to admit that she had a pretty great amount of arm strength. Plumeria groaned and pushed up, making a lunge for the twirling Sun Flute. She also had an insurance policy.

"Crobat, grab it!" she shouted as she dove for the object. Clemont grit his teeth and moved forward, patting Luxray. It was going to hurt, he knew, but Plumeria was being beyond persistent. The Gleam Eyes Pokémon sparked all over his body and blasted forward, knocking into Plumeria and sending the Team Skull admin off the side of the stairs where she was forced to grip the edge with both hands, slowly pulling herself back up.

"Vikavolt, go! Take Crobat down!" Clemont yelled out. Like a sudden shot that appeared to be little more than a flash of shadow, Vikavolt was in front of Crobat, tangling with the poisonous flyer. They grappled in midair. The Sun Flute finished spiraling and Lillie reached out for it, clasping with her hands and pulling it tight.

"On it! Komala," Lillie cried, beginning to dash up the stairs carefully. Plumeria finally pulled herself up, flipping with more alacrity than Clemont had expected. She dove for Lillie, but her hands barely managed to rake through the blonde's hair, pulling at the tie on her ponytail. Clemont dove now, locking himself around Plumeria's ankles.

"You need to stop this, right now!" Clemont roared at her. She didn't listen, tossing a punch at him, but that was caught by Hau, who sent all three of them rolling to the sides and nearly falling off the stairs again. "Bonnie, go with Lillie! We have no idea how long she'll need to be unprotected, so protect her!"

"I'm on it, big brother!" Bonnie said, quickly placing herself on top of Squishy, who gave a single bark and bounded up the stairs in great leaps. Rotom immediately zipped after her with a light "Aye, aye, Captain Clemont!".

"Why do you little brats have to keep getting in our way? !" Plumeria snapped angrily. Her free hand snapped out, battering both Clemont and Hau's cheeks, forcing them off of her. Yet again, she flipped up, and Clemont had to wonder whether or not she had been someone that once aspired to the position of the Ali'i ka Leilani. She certainly showcased the movements. It was only a brief moment of consideration, though. His mind first returned to the battle.

"Because you're being selfish. I already told you, Plumeria," Clemont said, shifting his body to the side in order to prevent Plumeria's advance up the stairs. He'd throw them all off if that was what it took to settle this fight once and for all. "You're not going to find your perfect world on the other side."

"Yeah," Hau agreed emphatically. "Your boss might like you, but I don't think Lusamine does. She just cares about herself, from the way she's treated someone as nice as Lillie."

"Like you-"

"Grow up!" Clemont yelled. He was done with this. For her being older than him, she was certainly more childish than even Bonnie could be, believing in her selfish ideal without considering the consequences or who she was really doing it for. His fist snapped out, nailing Plumeria on the side of the face. She fell backwards, hitting the stairs away from the edge and beginning to roll downwards, towards the bottom. Clemont looked to Hau and the two began to give chase. There was no doubt she'd get back up if they gave her the chance to. Sure enough, before they'd even reached the bottom, Plumeria had used her hand to stop herself from rolling and was getting back on her feet once again.

That was when Clemont finally broke out of the insular world that the stairs had put them into. Plumeria's order had  _not_  gone unheeded. The Skull grunts were all rapidly closing in on the stairs, some of them stepping on to its base, only to be yanked back by Lionel's Banette with an eerie grin on its face. The only positive about the sea of grunts, was that all of Clemont's friends were there, too. Kahili had cut an entire swath around her, while Hapu and the other woman from earlier stood back to back as Mudsdale kicked powerfully into the mess, ending with an explosion of pollen all around. Even Team Rocket was destroying the competition, with Crabrawler riding a spinning Bewear as he fired off Bubblebeams and Paybacks in turn.

Clemont's quarry, however, was Plumeria, who was making another bid for the side of the stairway without a shred of remorse. He looked to Hau, who was busy staring off into the crowd at the site of Pipi and his Incineroar cutting through other large groups of enemies together. The boy quickly noticed him looking and grinned, clapping his hands together.

"Incineroar, Pipi! I need you guys up here!" he yelled out jubilantly, despite the intense battle going on around them. Though, Clemont did note the slight edge to his voice. In any case, the sun was almost up now, leaving their window horribly short at that moment. However, Clemont decided to ignore it for the time being to focus in on Plumeria. A sudden Flamethrower made of powerful blue flames slammed into the crowd of Skull grunts, making sure to avoid any friendly individuals. Clemont took that as a chance to strike.

"Luxray, block her with Swift!" Clemont called, His Pokémon whipped around, sending the golden stars colliding right with Plumeria's path. It allowed Clemont just enough time to reach her and tackle her. She punched up in seconds, but he turned his head, allowing her to only slam into his cheek. He grabbed downward, suddenly grappling with her hands as they began to roll. The loud roar of two separate Charizard pierced the air, and Clemont felt a little embarrassed; it was possible Korrina would see him in this state, if what he guessed was true. Either way, he and Plumeria were on a rolling collision course, yet again, for the bottom of the stairs.

They had barely hit the bottom, the dust pluming around them and surrounded by the mess of Skull grunts, when the entire canyon felt as though it were shaking. Clemont sat up, practically straddling the admin as the whole entire place was sent off kilter.

"Yo! What's this, bro?" asked one of the Skull thugs, indicating that they had no idea what was going on either.

"Maybe it has to do with that black Charizard, yo. Totally unfair bringin' somethin' like this to a street fight," said another one. Clemont shook his head, especially when the grunts in question were suddenly knocked aside unceremoniously by Silvally, flying halfway across the open space. The creature took a moment to breathe, seeming strained, but Clemont took that and the shaking of the canyon to his advantage.

"Now, Hau!"

"Incineroar, knock her out!" the bright boy ordered of his Pokémon. Plumeria's eyes grew wide, and Clemont stood, stumbling backwards amidst the trembling. He was caught by Gladion, who nodded wordlessly, as Incineroar ignored the shaky ground and simply punched Plumeria across the face. It wasn't nice, but it got the job done as she fell and collapsed on the ground. "Well, there's one thing done! Rest should be easy!"

"How…optimistic of you," Gladion said with a sense of almost disdain (or so Clemont felt it would be if they weren't all on the same side together). Either way, Clemont was shaking his head, wondering what all the trembling was from. In the time it took him to clear that, Serena, Team Rocket and Lionel had approached, while Kahili and the others seemed relatively pinned down by the glut of foes that were encroaching on them.

"Optimistic or not, we need to get to that altar," Lionel snapped. "Serena, you have the Moon Flute, right?"

"Yeah…we have a problem with that," Serena chuckled out, but she didn't have the time to explain what it was. One of the grunts suddenly leapt forward, a Yungoos snapping its teeth angrily on her shoulder.

"Yo! Don't turn yo back on someone when yer battlin' them!"

"Frenzy Plant!" A sudden plant erupted from the ground, slamming into the enemy and knocking them and plenty of those surrounding the group away. Clemont looked around for the source of the voice and saw Sawyer landing carefully from off the back of his Salamence. Landing right next to him was Alain. In fact, lots of people were dropping into the battlefield in the first place. Clemont could see Champion Steven and Gary; even Cynthia was fast approaching, with her Garchomp flying alongside the flirting Professor Sycamore. Everyone was really here. "Sorry we're all a little late, but the League just got the signal from the Aether Foundation."

"You still got here fast…whoever you are," Gladion said, passing his eyes along all of their old friends. It was really remarkable the extent to which the League had managed to get people here. Their chance for a preemptive strike was truly possible, after all.

"Serena!" called the voice of Mairin, who ran over to join the person she was calling to, slipping her arms in a hug around her. There were still the sounds of battle all around, but it appeared that the arrival of reinforcements had dulled the battle, at least for the time being. Clemont flicked his eyes upward, his eyebrows raising. Bonnie and Lillie seemed to almost be at the top of the altar (which, with a gulp, he realized was a  _very_  long way up, now that he thought about it), while all around, more reinforcements were falling from the sky.

"Mairin, you're looking well! A little taller, too, it seems!" Serena exclaimed happily, taking the girl's hands and briefly separating themselves from one another. Clemont continued to watch the sky as more and more familiar faces fell from ropes that draped down the helicopters. In particular, he noticed Dawn and Piplup along with Brock and May sliding right on down. Then there was the quartet floating in midair with a blue glow as an even brighter one consumed the Alakazam controlling them.

"Catch up  _later_ , twerpette! Don't we have somewhere to be if we want to stop these idiots from destroying the world and that whole thingamajig?" Jessie asked, pointing with her thumb, up towards the altar. Clemont had to admit that Jessie had a very strong point, especially as Luxray nuzzled against his side.

"He's right. We'll all talk later, when this is over. Give the others our regards!" Serena yelled out, throwing a hand up, just as Braixen cried out. That cry was the signal for them to get moving, mostly because the enemies around them were closing in again.

"Gourgeist, Leech Seed!" Jessie yelled, flicking her hair a little. Gourgeist reared back and spat the seeds out, trapping those new, jumping Skull members in the gnarled plants. Naturally, Jessie cackled maniacally.

"Yo, we totally got beat by a giant pumpkin…"

"Not…cool…bro…" Clemont shook his head and decided to walk forward, not letting any fatigue from the day slow him down in the slightest. They had a task to do, and right now it meant reaching Lillie and Bonnie.

"Everyone, let's go!" he called, waving them over. Lionel nodded, though he didn't move from his spot, as though that meant he planned on staying behind in order to hold back the tide of their enemy. Clemont accepted that just fine, his gaze swiveling over to Sawyer and Alain, both of whom nodded. For a brief second, he was surprised at how roughly similar Sawyer and Hau looked next to each other, but since neither gave the appearance of knowing each other, he laughed it off.

"We'll provide backup," Alain said, placing a hand on his Charizard, who roared loudly. Its call was responded to by another Charizard, which Clemont took to mean that Kiawe and some of the captains had probably arrived, as well, but he couldn't be entirely sure. All he had to do was accept that they were all here to help, and they had their ultimate job to do. "Mairin, are you ready?"

"Ready as ever, Alain!" Mairin cheered. Chespie also seemed ready for action, flexing almost unnecessarily. Clemont looked back to Serena, who nodded. Greninja rushed forward, almost like he was imbued with extra energy to move forward. Some of the grunts were standing in his path, but then they weren't, blasted apart by the toss of his liquid shuriken.

"Well, let's get moving, old chums!" James cried out. Jessie was already ahead of him, placing her feet on the stairs as she ran forward like usual, as the leader. James, Meowth and Wobbuffet were right behind her, while Clemont, Hau, Serena, and Gladion took up the rear, making note of any of their enemies that would try approaching them. All of their Pokémon were at their side, preparing for any more of the fight that was ahead. Clemont glanced up, hoping to catch a sight of Vikavolt, but seeing only specks as he dueled with Crobat and fired a Charge Beam somewhere in the distance.

That alone made it obvious that there would be more of a fight, especially because Team Skull was now going airborne, it seemed. Quite the amount that had yet to have been defeated were rising now, aiming for the altar with all speed, carried by Golbat. Worse than that…they sounded like they were  _rapping_  about it, which drew Clemont's face into one of utmost revulsion.

"Yo, we're Team Skull, we're the baddest around, and now we ain't even limited to the ground!" they were calling out. Clemont's face now started to twitch from the sound of it. If Team Skull could kill someone with sound alone, this would be the way for them to do it. "We got Golbat, Zubat and Rattata, too! You mess wit' us, we make you some foos!"

"Please make dem stop…I taut nails on chalkboard was bad!" Meowth complained loudly.

"Wobba…Wobbuffet!" Wobbuffet clearly agreed. Clemont was forced to agree as well, simply from how utterly wrenching the sound of them rapping was. Team Skull may have had some modicum of skills…somewhere…but a career in the music industry was not one of them. Clemont shook his head yet again, attempting to shake the horrible rapping from his ears as he and the others continued to run forward, avoiding crumbled areas of the stairs.

Light burst over the horizon, illuminating the very tip of the construct at the top in brilliant hues of red and gold. It really made it seem the ancient and majestic structure that the Altar of the Sunne truly was. To Clemont, it was also a sign of their very impending deadline. They had to hurry. Knowing that, Clemont pushed his body, forcing himself to not give in to poor cardiovascular fitness and push onward, right up the stairs with Serena and Gladion next to him.

"Yo! Golbat, use yo Air Cutter!" A gaggle of the Skull grunts at the side were pointing forward, making their weird hand gestures, even in midair. The Golbat that were holding them beat their wings mercilessly, sending out the opaque blades of air for the proceeding group.

"Braixen, Psyshock!" Serena shouted, almost placing her hands on the steps. Braixen swiped her claws out as she backed up against Greninja. Both attacked at the same time, one sending out purple streaks of light that slammed into the Golbat, while the other tossed the liquid blades forward. Like that, the Pokémon holding up some of Team Skull lost their strength and let go of the trainers. Clemont would have grimaced at the group of them falling, but chose to not worry about it. Even if they were screaming in a high-pitched manner, he was certain they would be fine thanks to all their comrades below. Right now, he had to deal with the comrades above.

"Yo! You can't be hurtin' our bros and Big Sis that way! Ariados, use Poison Sting!" one of the grunts yelled. The large spider emerged from a pokeball, dropping right in between Team Rocket, Hau and themselves.

"Keep going, idiots," Gladion snapped at the trio of bumbling thieves. They shared a look, and soon saluted randomly. Hau just shrugged with a little grin and ran on, clearly eager to reunite with Lillie and Bonnie at the top. Clemont continued facing forward with Luxray at his side as the Ariados that had dropped seemed to have surrounded all of them. "Silvally, Multi-Attack!"

"Huurrrrah!" Silvally roared. Its claws glowed a multitude of colors, constantly shifting until it decided on the color that matched its current red body and the glow from Gladion's Z-Ring. Then, it ran forward and began swiping aside with them, flames seeming to appear. The Pokémon's strength was more than aptly demonstrated from the attack, large swaths of Ariados being pushed aside as though they were nothing. Clemont looked to Serena, who also seemed to be acknowledging the strength of Ash's rival. They weren't going to stand around and do nothing, though.

"Luxray, Thunder Fang!" Clemont commanded, throwing his hand forward. Luxray charged forward into the same mess as Silvally, fangs charged up with lightning before it sunk down onto a group of Ariados. Braixen and Greninja, meanwhile, were cutting into the group behind them. At the same time, the Golbat holding their opponents airborne were also moving into action. The Air Cutter sliced through the air, aiming right for the trainers and their exposed bodies.

"No, you don't!" Clemont snapped his gaze upwards in time to see a slew of Aura Spheres come flying through the air, knocking into the Golbat and driving them wildly off course. He didn't need to see in order to know just who had managed to do that, though it became remarkably obvious when he saw a rope descending from one of the helicopters. Seconds later, a Lucario dropped, clearly in a Mega Evolved form.

"Korrina, I didn't expect you to come to Alola," Clemont remarked, hiding the slight lie with his little grin, before his girlfriend could actually appear. Serena flashed a smile, though Gladion appeared to not really care, ordering a Crush Claw from Silvally. Clemont turned his head to Luxray's electricity transferring from his fangs to his whole body as he began charging through the Ariados to cut a small path. They were really stuck in the thick of it, though. Especially since Clemont noticed some of the Ariados climbing up the sides of the stairs. When he turned back, he suddenly found his girlfriend's arms around him giddily.

"Like I'd miss the chance to see you!" she said. He couldn't see her face fully, but that was fine with him as he quickly hugged her back. She got the message and pulled back, offering him a wink. Lucario's fist burned a bright orange and then slammed into some of the Ariados behind them, sending them flying. They were quickly replaced.

"Th-that's nice, but doesn't the Shalour Gym need to be run?" Clemont asked in order to get himself out of any embarrassment at his girlfriend's actions. Serena waved to Korrina, who was momentarily distracted by it, but she soon turned her attention back to her boyfriend, hands on his shoulders.

"They wanted a representative from the Kalos Gyms that  _wasn't_  you," Korrina pointed out. Clemont frowned; he'd never heard of anything like that before…Still, he shrugged regarding it, figuring that there was no point in complaining about her presence there. He  _had_  expected her to show up in the first place, anyway.

"Well, either way, it's good to see you. We just don't have time right now," Clemont admitted to her. She took her hands off his shoulders and pumped her fists with enthusiasm.

"Don't worry about a thing, Clemont!" she called out, pulling away and coming to stand close to Lucario with her usually giddy grin. "The League is here to support, and as a Gym Leader, that's exactly what I'm here to do! Lucario, Bone Rush!"

Clemont had to shake his head at Korrina's unending energy. Sometimes he had to wonder if one day he'd be unable to keep up with  _her_ …but at the same time, he liked it that way. As if possessed by something, bolstered by confidence, he closed the distance, taking her into a hug and then briefly hesitating before putting his lips on hers. When he pulled away, he was blushing like crazy, as was she. Serena laughed at that, while Gladion was kicking at an Ariados that ensnared his leg. Lucario came in and beat the Pokémon away in order to free him. Then Clemont adjusted his glasses and faced forward. The Ariados that had been scuttling up the sides had now gathered to block their progression. He cracked his knuckles as Serena and Gladion joined to his side.

"One more push to the top," he breathed. They nodded. Korrina was slapping her cheeks, recovering from his move with a grin. Lucario changed direction to launch behind into that mess of clustering enemies while Braixen and Greninja flanked them at their sides. "Let's do this!"

"Silvally, Tri-Attack!" Gladion cried, placing a hand to his face. Silvally hunkered down, three rotating colors appearing, blue, red, and yellow. They fired out into the Ariados while Clemont and Serena commanded their own attacks. They struck home, blasting a small and narrow path aside for them to traverse. Needing no words, the three and their Pokémon dashed forward, though they soon found themselves being hemmed in by the forces around them.

"Stone Edge, let's go!" It sounded like both a familiar and unfamiliar voice, but Clemont wasn't about to take the obvious support for granted. Stones flew forward, jagged in their edges, as they struck upon the Ariados. Some chunks of the ancient stairs also crumbled inward, but their own trio managed to skirt them. Clemont threw his gaze back, as did Serena, who happened to hesitate at the sight of the familiar purple-haired boy, standing atop a Torterra that had landed in the middle of the Ariados below.

"P-Paul…" Serena gasped out. However, she was obviously able to realize it wasn't the same Paul that they had known from their battle with DARC, but the one that had battled with Ash what could have been a lifetime ago. This was only evident from the small spark of respect in his eyes.

"Just go," he said brusquely. The three watched him a moment longer, and then seemed to decide to heed his advice. They dashed up the stairs once more, growing ever closer to the altar at the top. Up above, Clemont caught sight of Vikavolt once more, still tussling with Crobat before sending another Charge Beam at it. That happened to clip its wing, forcing Crobat to spiral downward without stopping. Vikavolt, as a result, whipped around to join back up with him.

"I guess Ash really does influence a whole lot of people," Serena noted. Clemont could hear a slight sense of exhaustion in her voice, and it was starting to settle into him just how long they had all been going, as well. The sun was rising quicker now, leaving their window closing all the more. There was another soft glow, and Clemont noticed Serena's Z-Ring glowing, as was Gladion's. The closer they got to the top, the brighter it was. "I mean, there was a really clear difference with  _that_  Paul. I can't have ever imagined the other one helping anybody out with something like this for no clear personal gain."

"Well, Ash is just that kind of person," Clemont laughed out, still keeping his eyes fixated on the rings. Gladion seemed to snort loudly at his statement.

"He is…" was the breathed-out answer. "Speaking of, where is he anyway? We could really use his help right about now."

"He'll be here. I'm sure of it," Serena said with conviction. It was clear she believed it and had faith in him with all her heart. Clemont decided to share in that faith as their feet made the final push for the top of the altar. In seconds, they had stepped upon it, each of their Pokémon racing for the sides, as if to protect it carefully. Clemont almost slumped, now really feeling the exhaustion as his hands fell to his knees from the strain. Once he'd taken a few breaths to get himself going again, he turned and looked out over the battle against Team Skull.

With their reinforcements, things had most definitely turned in their favor, even if some of their enemies were attempting to still reach them. It was an encouraging sight. Now they just had the ultimate battle to take on. It was time to open the Ultra Space. Heaving in one more breath, Clemont stood and ran to where Serena and Gladion were approaching. Naturally, they weren't alone on top of the large structure. There appeared to be an ancient dais, emblazoned with the same symbol as that on the Sun Flute. Standing there were Team Rocket, Hau, Lillie and Bonnie (as well as Rotom, too). They had taken Nebby out, still in its inert form and placed it in between that dais and another, emblazoned with a moon-like sigil. Clemont stopped.

"Your Z-Rings…they're glowing like crazy now," he observed. His scientific mind was already whirring with the possibilities.

"Uh…mine isn't," Hau pointed out, lifting his wrist as well. Sure enough, his was the same as it always was. Team Rocket was blinking rapidly, looking swiftly between the three glowing rings that were clasped about Serena, Gladion and Lillie's hands. Clemont's hand flew to his chin, practically stroking it with interest and contemplation.

"Do we really have time for this?" Bonnie asked, folding her arms impatiently. "I mean, the sun's almost in the sky completely, which means we'll lose our chance to open the Ultra Space, right?"

"Bonnie's right," Lillie said, trying to pass off the issue. She gripped the Sun Flute tighter and held it out. "All we need to do is perform the ritual, I think, to restore Nebby's power with the flutes. You got the Moon Flute, right, Serena?"

"About that," Serena noted, swinging her bag off and digging into it. As her bag dropped to the ground, she had pulled out an object that looked extraordinarily similar to the other flute, only blue, and snapped almost cleanly in half. Clemont practically lunged forward to take the object from Serena's hands. It felt warm to the touch, like a nighttime breeze during summer, and Clemont could almost swear it was glowing…almost the same glow as they were all currently seeing from the Z-Rings. Suddenly, he had to wonder if they were connected. "We found it like that on Exeggutor Island. Maybe it just broke naturally."

"Or maybe it has to do with this 'other Cosmog' that Lillie saw," Gladion spat out. "Either way, this is a real issue. If we can't restore Cosmog's power, then we cannot enter the Ultra Space safely, and take down Guzma and Lusamine before the Day of Stars."

"Well, there must be some way to fix it," James said, holding a finger up in the air. Clemont wanted to agree with him, but he had no knowledge of such a thing. He looked up towards Lillie, wondering if all her research could have led her there, but from the way she was biting her lip in worry, it was all too obvious that she had no idea. Nor did Bonnie or Squishy, and they had spent a month alongside Lionel.

"If there is, we can't figure it out before dawn," Clemont stated, holding the flute gingerly in his hands. All of them deflated, looking disappointed, even Hau (although, he looked more contemplative than disappointed). Clemont's lips twisted a little, trying to figure out if there might be any way for him to help fix the problem at hand before their time was up. He looked around, seeing if there was some sort of clue about the area.

Then he saw Nebby, lying there in its unresponsive state, glowing. In fact, now that he looked closer, Nebby was glowing with the same kind of light that eclipsed the Z-Rings, and seemed to be doing so for the flute in his and Lillie's hands. At this, he walked forward, looking right at Lillie before he reached his hands out and clasped hers. Lillie looked surprised, but let him take the Sun Flute, feeling its familiar warmth. His other hand touched to the Z-Ring and could likewise feel the same kind of energy. Releasing Lillie's hands, he bent down, touching them to Nebby. It was a slightly different energy, either because it was waning or because it was a receiver instead of a giver.

"I think…we might have a shot," he finally said aloud, willing to put his hypothesis to the test. All eyes turned to him, desperate for that hope. He lifted the broken Moon Flute up a little. "I know it's all very unscientific of me, but I really do think that the flutes and the Z-Rings share the same power with Nebby. I can't really explain it or why; they're different, but the same. I think, too, that all of your Z-Rings are glowing because you received them from the Tapus."

"That makes…kind of sense…" Gladion said, folding his arms as he seemed to be trying to figure things out. Team Rocket, especially Jessie, already looked lost.

"Rotom cannot say for certain, but Rotom  _does_  detect an eighty percent chance that Clemont is correct," Rotom said in support of Clemont's theory. It also acted like it was nodding its head.

Gladion thought a moment, and then produced his own query regarding the hypothesis. "But then, why haven't they glowed like this before? And what would it have to do with Cosmog?"

"Nebby comes from the Ultra Space, right?" Lillie suggested, glancing down to their unresponsive friend. "Maybe it's possible, since the Ultra Space seems to absorb things, that it and the power of the Z-Rings and the Tapus are connected!"

"That's my thinking exactly! This place obviously has a close connection with both Nebby and the Ultra Space; that's the reason for the barrier, and must explain why it's glowing within such close proximity. So, if we can combine the power of the four Tapus  _through_  all of your Z-Rings, then it's possible that we can do something to open the Ultra Space or restore Nebby. I can't be sure of how well it'll work though. We  _did_  decide that we needed the flutes for a reason."

"I say try it, whether it works or not," Hau told them. He was tapping his own ring with a slightly bemused smile. "I mean, mine's not glowing, so Clemont's probably right. Nothing bad can really happen, right? If it fails, we're right back to where we started, and if it works, then heck yeah!"

"Heck yeah!" Lillie said, though it sounded beyond strange coming from her lips. She and Hau met in a high five while Serena nodded positively.

"Let's give it a shot, then! We'll join our Z-Rings together over Nebby and hopefully that all can do the trick," she said, holding her own brightly glowing ring out. Gladion was the only one that looked displeased with the notion. Rather, he looked more apprehensive. Thankfully, he decided to share his thought rather than keeping it to himself.

"We need Ash, then." Clemont would have grimaced at the thought of where his best friend could possibly be in such a crisis, but his mind was prevented from doing so by the sharp outcry of Braixen. All of them turned around, their Pokémon bristling with the ferocity of battle. Hau ran forward, too, Pipi and Incineroar with him as a huge group of enemies arrived, flapping on the air. Clearly, some members of Team Skull were more than persistent in getting past their protectors. Especially Plumeria.

"Aw man, don't you ever just stay down?" Hau asked, sounding just a little annoyed. Plumeria wasn't looking too good, nor did Crobat as it held her up. Either way, the forces that had reached the top of the altar didn't look ready to back down, which left their assault group with nowhere to run atop the space.

"I would…ask the…same…" Plumeria gasped out. It was the clear sign of a woman who had been defeated, but in her madness and desperation to be with her boss, to "save" their family, was pushing herself beyond her limits. It would have been commendable, if it wasn't insane. "We can't…let you…have our…future reality…"

"When will you learn, Plumeria?" Clemont shouted up at her, but she was done paying attention to him. Gladion stepped forth with a snarl upon his face.

"Just stand down, already, Plumeria!" he snapped up at her. "There's no need for us to do this. Team Skull lost the moment reinforcements arrived. If you don't want to be caught in the-"

"Attack them now! We can't let them get to the boss!" Plumeria yelled. She was beyond gone, twisted with a sense of loyalty to the man that had saved her without realizing how lost that man was, himself. They were all just being what everyone told them they were. Clemont turned to Vikavolt, ready to battle one last time despite the creeping exhaustion. Gladion, likewise, was gripping towards his Z-Ring.

"Yeah? Well, we'll get there! Because we have to! Greninja, full power, now!" Clemont turned to where Greninja was standing, and his eyes widened as water blasted forth in a towering torrent. It was a beacon for everyone there to see as that torrent moved inward, forming a giant shuriken. Serena's eyes shined with happiness, and Bonnie jumped up and down.

"It's Ash-Greninja! Ash-Greninja!"

"Denenene!"

"Rotom is most pleased to see, Ash!"

"Greninja, let's go! Use Water Shuriken!" They couldn't see him yet, but wherever he was, Greninja could feel him, grabbing ahold of his giant shuriken and tossing it forward. It traveled in a wide arc, one the Skull grunts didn't see coming. It slammed into them, knocking them from their flying steeds. "Go, Toucannon! Catch them before they drop!"

"Toucah!" Toucannon cried out. That's when they saw him, blazing forth from above, Toucannon letting him go. Ash dropped, Pikachu on his shoulder and Decidueye on his side as he landed nimbly on the ground of the altar, some small distance away. He rolled forward into a crouch. Pikachu leapt off his shoulder, cheeks sparking dangerously.

"Ash!" Lillie said with a blossoming smile. Clemont could practically feel the elation all around them, especially when he looked to see his best friend's Z-Ring glowing brightly. Then he looked to Plumeria, who looked a mixture between shocked, angry and altogether fearful. It wasn't hard to see why: Ash looked different. He still held the same confidence as always, but there was a clarity there, and a purpose that kept him driving forward.

"Long time, no see, man!" Hau cheered, throwing his fists in the air. Even Team Rocket appeared to be crying from it, hugging each other with cheers of their own. Ash smiled at it, drawing back up to his full height. Decidueye landed next to Pikachu and Greninja, ready to take on the remaining forces around them. Serena, Clemont noticed, was staring at him with tears of happiness blooming in her eyes.

"Sorry I'm late, everyone. Hope it didn't cause too many problems," he laughed out, rubbing the back of his head. Then his eyes grew stern as he stared at Plumeria a moment, facing her down. Her upper lip was twitching angrily from it. Once Ash seemed to have delivered his silent declaration, he looked to Clemont. "I could hear your idea on the way over, Clemont! Let's try it! Though…guess we should get rid of these guys first, huh?"

"You won't get rid of us so easily!" Plumeria shrieked. Crobat began to dive, carrying her forward on a sudden attack. Ash snapped his head back to their opponents while Hau muttered something of being well aware they couldn't get rid of her so easily.

"Decidueye, Spirit Shackle. Pikachu, Thunderbolt! Greninja, Water Shuriken!" Ash cried out. He reached behind his back as Greninja did so, and the two of them heaved the giant shuriken together, letting it fly furiously. Decidueye was on the move faster, flinging arrow after arrow at the now fleeing Skull grunts. Ash's arrival had turned the tide of battle once more in their favor.

"Chuuuuuu!" Pikachu called out, sending a massive Thunderbolt into the air that sparked and caused some of the remaining Skull members to drop. Those that were left behind either couldn't move, or clustered around Plumeria fearfully.

"Big Sis, what do we do? This guy's like major strong!"

"I…We…" Plumeria had genuinely lost it now, the battle having turned far away from her favor. She was almost snarling. "Finish them! Finish them before they-!"

"Sorry, but there's no way that's happening!" Ash called and his fists came up, the brightly glowing Z-Ring crossing over his other wrist. It was now tinged with a ghostly green as Decidueye began to glow powerfully. Then Ash made new hand movements that Clemont had never seen before, though Serena seemed to recognize them as he lifted up like a ghost. "Sinister Arrow Raid!"

"Kooroo!" Decidueye called powerfully. He shot up into the air, circling around as the air around them grew dark, almost like a dark and spooky night. Plumeria's eyes widened even more, and the rest of her subordinates all looked appropriately freaked out. Decidueye spread his wings wide, and a large multitude of arrows appeared in the air. They circled around, floating of their own accord, and then they fired forward with a sweeping of Decidueye's wing, practically homing in on every single remaining grunt. Then Decidueye shot forward, right at Plumeria and ripped through Crobat.

An explosion followed, causing Clemont's shirt to ripple and Serena to tamp down her skirt. There were some screams, though they were cut off by the sight of Toucannon swooping over to catch them and place them on the ground far below. Plumeria, however, flew forward, bouncing along the ground and then rolling until she'd landed at Ash's feet. Seconds later, Decidueye had returned like a vanishing specter, right at Ash's side. They instantly slapped wing to hand with a grin. Likewise, Greninja's form faded, no longer being needed for battle. Once all that happened, everyone looked down at the battered Plumeria. She was gripping at the ground, like she wanted to crawl forward, but lacked the strength to do so.

She was crying as well, as though seeing some long sought after dream vanishing before her very eyes.

"Ash," Serena said, being the first to step forward towards her boyfriend. Clemont wanted to have a proper reunion with him, too, but in the midst of everything, he knew that would have to wait for a little later. They were, however, able to lock eyes and nod at one another, both glad at their small reunion after a month of being away. "You look like you found it."

"I did," Ash said, grinning at her. Clemont wasn't quite sure what they were talking about, but he had a fairly decent idea; Ash's eyes gave away everything that needed to be said. The raven-haired trainer looked down at Plumeria, the woman's usual aloof veneer completely broken. He seemed to want to say something, but decided against it for the moment. "Decidueye, watch her."

"Koorai!" Decidueye said, lifting a wing in salute. His job became even easier with Toucannon returning to his side. Ash stepped away, over towards Nebby and Lillie. He wasn't alone, as all of them did the same, even those without Z-Rings on their wrists. Ash then took in a deep breath.

"It's been a long time, huh?" he laughed out, as though they were catching up over tea, even if that wasn't the case. He dropped his arms, looking at all of them with his usual ecstatic grin. "We've all grown a lot. I can tell. So…let's complete the journey. Let's save Nebby as best as we can!"

"Yeah! Yeah!" Bonnie cheered, herself almost looking like she had been crying her own tears of joy. Clemont didn't bring it up, choosing to save his sister's sense of stubborn pride. So, Ash stepped forward, throwing his ring out over the unconscious form of Nebby. Clemont continued to grip at the Moon Flute as he watched Lillie, Serena and Gladion also move forward.

Their rings were even brighter than before, like having all four of those chosen by the Tapus, their "champions", made them suddenly more powerful. With a slight jolt, Clemont realized that it had to have been the first time in a very long time that the Tapus' Champions were all together in one place, sharing their power with one another. Each stuck their fists out, like they were going to fist bump or do something similar to that. They didn't, instead crossing their wrists right over one another on top of Nebby. From Lillie's hands, the Sun Flute dropped, caught by Bonnie.

The light began to pulse powerfully around them, but nothing was happening quite yet, and Clemont had to wonder why. Surely his theory was strong enough for at least  _something_  to happen. The flute in his hands felt warm, and it was pulsing as well. Clemont nodded; it made complete sense. Perhaps they couldn't actually complete the ritual, but it was possible to at least do something to get it all started. He looked across to his sister on the other side.

"Bonnie, play the Sun Flute," he said. She held no hesitation in doing so, and Clemont attempted to hold the Moon Flute together as he raised it to his lips. He blew into it, but no sound came out, utterly broken beyond belief. Yet when Bonnie blew into hers, it was a beautiful sound; a single, crisp, clear note that resounded around the entire altar. Squishy burbled, transforming back into his usual, small form and returning to Bonnie's bag, along with Rotom, who appeared to scream that it was blinded. Team Rocket held on to one another, and the light from the Z-Rings burst out.

Clemont almost fell back, while Hau ended up doing exactly that, caught within his growling Incineroar's arms. Plumeria looked up from the ground as Decidueye loomed over her threateningly. It was no surprise that everyone was reacting. There was a large bubble suddenly forming around the stage, swirling with celestial and cosmic energy. Things like stars and galaxies appeared in the air, cutting those on the altar off from all other manner of reality. Clemont swallowed, and then he looked to Nebby, who was pulsing. Strangely, he seemed to be flickering between that inert, corporeal form and a larger, more ethereal form that looked like a lion.

He also seemed to speak in a booming, loud voice that took every single one of them off guard.

_Lillie…Thank you…_ he spoke kindly. Lillie's eyes seemed to begin watering, while Ash and Serena stared in absolute awe at the aura of this majestic beast.  _I do not have much strength…not from this, but I do have enough to speak._

"Nebby…is that really you…?" Lillie gasped out. The ethereal lion nodded its head, fading in and out. It was clear to Clemont that they had both succeeded and failed at the same time. His idea of the Z-Rings and the flutes sharing a common property had been correct, but there was no way they were making it into the Ultra Space. Not today, at least.

_It is,_  Nebby spoke kindly.  _I want to thank you, Ash and Serena for trying to help me. I love you very much! But…as I am now, I can't help you. I can't save you._

"That's okay, Nebby," Ash spoke clearly. The lion briefly turned its head. "We're not asking you to save us.  _We_  wanted to help  _you_."

_Yes, I'm aware. Yet with the threat from beyond, from the Dread Sovereign, I could not stand by. But my power is too little, half of it was stolen and locked away,_  Nebby told them. Clemont found it fascinating. Perhaps the little one (if the lion could even be deemed as little) didn't know every scrap of detail, particularly regarding the rings and the flute, but he seemed to know something.  _My counterpart is waiting. Only together can we offer safe passage. Lusamine, she took a most dangerous route, and I can only imagine the state of her mind now._

"So, what you're saying is that we're on the right path, correct?" Serena asked simply. Nebby returned with a simple nod in return. They all breathed in some relief at that. "That's a start."

_I am sorry…I don't have much time now. My power, until my majesty is returned, I cannot hold it for long,_  Nebby said, sounding sad and crying over his lamentable state. Lillie looked like she wanted to reach forward and hug it, but couldn't, due to holding her position.  _Please, free me. Free me and our combined power, that of equal and opposite sides, will open the way for you._

_On the Day…free…her…_

_Free…from the…one in black…_

Then just like that, the energy provided by the Z-Rings vanished. The cosmic swirling completely disappeared, leaving them all there, staring at the once more inert Nebby. The glow still remained on the Z-Rings, obviously still affected by the altar they were standing on. However, the form of the lion had completely vanished now, leaving behind nothing but air. As the sunlight returned to graze upon their skin, the sobering truth settled in: they had failed.

Gladion kicked at the ground. "So, all this was for nothing."

"Not nothing," Hau said, keeping up his cheerful attitude, as usual. Incineroar was doing the same, if sneaking glances at Decidueye, like he was measuring his rival. "Nebby told us, right: we gotta find a way to fix the flutes and save the other one. Then we can come back and win."

"On the Day of Stars, maybe, but how much will that put others at risk?" Gladion demanded. Clemont stepped between them, putting a hand onto Gladion's shoulder with comfort.

"If we all work together, we can prevent casualties, all of them. Nebby gave us a clue, something to work with. We just need a little more information about everything that's going on. Our preemptive strike may have failed, but we still have another chance."

"Information…" Serena breathed out. Clemont slid his eyes over to her and realized she was thinking about something intently. He was almost certain that it regarded around her father, and with Clemont allowing his mind a chance to breathe, he could imagine how that would actually benefit them in the long run. Though, that kind of thought or discussion was best tabled until they were somewhere safe, like the Foundation. Or at least until they could hear their minds actually think over Plumeria's sudden sobbing.

"The Ultra Space…isn't safe? Does that mean…? Is Guzma…?" Plumeria was sobbing out, almost choking upon her words as she did so. "Does that mean our world…our reality…is Guzma's mind going to leave him entirely?"

No one could answer her, being so unaware of what Nebby's words meant. All Clemont knew was what the Ultra Space seemed to comprise of, from Burnet's research; in the end, he figured it was plausible that one could be driven mad from that, even if he couldn't say with certainty. Regardless of it all, Ash split away from their group, walking right up to Plumeria and grabbing her by the straps of her tanktop. "None of us know. But what we  _do_  know is that  _this_ world is in danger because of it. Now, you can either keep fighting us and cause this world to fall apart, or you could help us and find a way to save both it and Guzma, too. Those are the only options."

"Only…?" Plumeria sounded so lost. Then again, Clemont figured that was what she was: someone who was lost and abandoned a long time ago, and was clinging on to that last shred of hope and light, even if it was all tangled up in the darkness until now. Finally, she looked up at Ash. "Can you save him? Can you save that dumbass boss of ours?"

Ash drew back a moment, and then he grinned, placing a hand across his heart. "I will."

There was a brief moment in which the sounds of battle below were heard and Plumeria hung her head. Then she raised it, and her voice along with it. "Stand down, Team Skull! The fight is over!"

Her voice echoed around the space of the canyon, and Clemont believed it would be entirely ineffectual. However, when he rotated his body to look out over the space from their high perch, he instead saw red lights, and the Skull grunts pulling away into a squat, like they were done fighting entirely and just wanted to sit and wait. Ash let go of Plumeria and held a hand out, which she clasped. It was a promise in that moment to work together, all to save the ones they loved.

The sun finally covered them entirely, and a loud breath was exhaled from all of their lungs simultaneously. The preemptive strike had failed, but, for the moment, their long war with Team Skull was over, and they could begin to prepare once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So, every time I seem to say it will be short it turns out this length…oh well. A rather action packed chapter with a lot of little things happening. I really wanted Ash's return to the battle to feel triumphant, and I hope that came off well! Other than that, the battle with Team Skull is finally over, and how that will go, you'll just have to see. But there was some stuff about what our heroes need to do. Naturally, the preemptive strike failed, but at least they know when to strike next!
> 
> We're in for a little bit of quiet now, so please stick around and enjoy. Until next time, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	11. A Settling

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With that battle over, we're calming the story down for a couple chapters, but hold on to your hats, because it won't last long! Chapter 11 time, yeah!

Chapter 11

A Settling

"Hey! That hurts!" Ash recoiled from the antiseptic being placed on his chest wound, but Serena was having none of it. She snapped her arm out with speed and snatched Ash's body, pulling him closer to her so he wouldn't move away. Then she pressed the cloth to his chest gently, just as Brock had instructed her to, before he'd left the room to tend to some Pokémon.

"Stop squirming around so much, and it wouldn't," Serena told him quietly, but with a biting edge that told him not to mess with her. He frowned, but allowed her to do as needed, even if Serena was having a slightly hard time thinking clearly with her boyfriend's bare chest mere inches from her face. Still, she was able to push that from her head in order to treat him as effectively as she could. "You have a broken bone; it's a wonder that Bébé's Aromatherapy and Chansey have brought you as far as they have."

"I'd attribute it to Ash's incredible healing powers," Clemont laughed out from a corner of the room. Ash grinned at that, but soon grimaced from the slight pain. Serena drew back, considering her work done for the moment, until their doctor friend could return. Ash seemed grateful for that, not enjoying the stinging sensation, and he proceeded to lean back with a sigh as Pikachu patted his arm kindly.

Feeling done with all that, Serena threw her cloth to the side and seated herself upon the bed that Ash was in during his patch-up. It was hard to believe that it had only been a few hours since their battle at the Altar of the Sunne. Really, it was hard to believe it had been little over twenty-four hours since they'd first come to the Aether Paradise after a month apart…or,  _she_  had come to the Aether Paradise. Either way, it felt nice to be gathered with all of her friends and boyfriend again, especially the latter.

"So…it's been a month for all of us," Clemont finally laughed out, scooting forward in his chair to approach the edge of the bed. Pikachu, seemingly tired from the day's events, curled himself up into a ball and fell asleep for a second.

"It sure has. Sorry we didn't have the time to catch up earlier and all," Ash apologized, reaching up to rub his hand through his hair. Serena yawned a little. She had caught a small snooze on the way back from the altar, as short as it had been, and was feeling more rested than when she'd almost passed out on the altar itself. As a result, there'd been almost no time to catch up with pretty much anyone that had dropped into the battle. Most of that came down to logistics, it seemed, given that Team Skull stopped the fight on Plumeria's orders, and from there it became a mess of orders and commands that led to further confusion in all of the moving and dealings. She had tried to excuse herself from it all, especially upon finding out that, like usual, Ash had been pushing himself with his bruises and a broken rib that was only healing thanks to Brock's expertise.

However, she couldn't be too mad at him. Ash had returned safely, and that meant more to her than much else, really. More than that, he seemed refreshed and renewed. It was different than back in Kalos, with Snowbelle City; he seemed matured now, rather than simply bouncing back, like he was striding forward with great purpose in every step. She couldn't help but suddenly lean over, placing her head on his shoulder with relief, thinking,  _My Pokémon Master…_

"You look like you've gotten way stronger, Clemont!" Ash remarked, making Serena smile a little. To that, Clemont looked almost a little embarrassed at the praise. "Serena mentioned that you were super important when it came to planning the attack."

"Shame it didn't work," Clemont lamented a little, but from the expression on his face, he wasn't beating himself up about it. Serena breathed in. Despite failing in their initial objective, the room felt so light to her, as though all the darkness they'd held on to for the last few months was gone. Ash held clarity, Clemont held confidence, and she held this newfound belief in her direction. Now, all they had to do was focus on the impending battle ahead.

The door to the room at the Aether Paradise finally opened. Serena's head shot up, Ash winced, and their combined movements almost sent Clemont tumbling from the chair.

"Ash!" Bonnie cried with all enthusiasm. She practically dived on the bed, causing Serena to jump away as the blonde girl smothered Ash with a hug. Dedenne did the same to Pikachu, waking the latter and knocking the two off the bed completely.

"Gah! Bonnie! Hurts!" Ash was screaming. Clemont stood rapidly, nabbing his backpack and pressing a button that sent his Aipom Arm out to grab Bonnie and pull her off. Ash's next words came in a wheeze. "Good to see you, too…"

"Pikapika…" Pikachu was giggling out as Dedenne touched his cheek to Pikachu's. At the same moment, Squishy seemed to hop out of Bonnie's bag and on to the bed, peering up at Ash. Serena's raven-haired boyfriend looked down at the little one, and then reached forward to pat him on the head. The door creaked once more and Ash looked up. They all turned in that direction to see two more standing there: Hau and Lillie. Ash breathed in, and then he smiled such a brilliant smile, Serena almost felt it would put her own to shame.

"I'm glad you're okay, Ash," Lillie spoke, her hands behind her back. Her hair was out of its ponytail, falling in tresses around her face as she was dressed in simple clothing that consisted of a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. They seemed to be more casual clothing than the one she would wear for traveling, but still looked very nice on her.

"And it's great to see the both of you, Lillie, Hau. How have you both been?" Ash asked, throwing his feet over the side of the bed, like he felt it was okay for him to begin to stand. That quickly proved to be only a moderately okay idea, considering he winced, but held just fine. Hau was the first, as predicted, to move forward.

"Super awesome! How about you?" Hau said. He quickly slapped Ash on the back, before realizing it was something he probably shouldn't have done. Ash just laughed (a wheezing one, but still a laugh) in response. "I'm totally impressed, though, man. You made a super cool entrance back at the altar. Think we could pull something like that off, Pipi?"

"Rairai!" Pipi agreed, flipping on her floating tail. Though, she was also easily distracted, joining the gamboling ring that was now herself, Pikachu and Dedenne. Hau shrugged it off, like the issue really didn't matter. Ash continued his chuckles, clutching at his ribs as he walked forward. He stumbled, and Serena made to catch him, but Lillie was actually there before her, pushing him back up with a grin. No words were said, and suddenly, Lillie's arms shot outward, wrapping around Ash, and even Serena. They were pulled in.

"Thank you, both of you," she whispered in their ears. Serena could once more hear the extra confidence in her voice, though she had to wonder what the blonde was thanking them for. She figured it out a moment later, when Lillie gripped tighter: she was thanking them for all of them reuniting once again, like a proper family. Serena hugged back.

"Okay, guys, no extra strain on Ash's injuries," called the familiar voice of the very competent doctor entering the room. Ash's grin increased, as it always did with one of his friends returning. Lillie let go, bowing low in apology.

"My apologies, doctor. I didn't mean to make him worse. So, please make him better," Lillie said politely. That caused a lot of giggles and chuckles to filter through the room. Lillie looked a little confused, but Hau just slung an arm around her to cheer her up.

"Just Brock is fine," Brock answered with a light laugh, patting the girl on the shoulder before he moved towards Ash. "As for you, Ash, I see you haven't curbed your recklessness in Alola whatsoever. I need to bandage you."

"Hey, blame Kahili! She sent me into that trial! That Totem Pokémon almost killed me a couple times over, right, Pikachu?" Ash asked for defense from his loyal Pokémon. Pikachu was too busy playing with the others in order to defend him, causing Ash to sigh before hissing through his teeth as Brock began wrapping the bandages around his midsection tightly.

"Yeah, because that explains the bandages I met you with," Serena said to him, almost rolling her eyes. Ash's mouth dropped open, and he flapped his jaw uselessly, causing more laughter to go through the room until he yelped as Brock finished his bandage, keeping it tight.

"There, you're all good to go. Just take it a little easy," he scolded his patient. Ash smiled a bit, whipping around to grab his shirt and throw it over himself, before doing the same with his vest.

"No promises there, Brock. Too much is going to be happening real soon." To this statement of Ash's, Pikachu broke away from his play circle to leap on to the bed, and then to Ash's shoulder. Ash nodded at his oldest partner, and then looked out the window that let sunlight stream into the room. "The Day of Stars will be soon."

"There's going to be quite a bit more before then," Clemont reminded them all. Serena nodded, feeling all of the anticipation in the room ratchet up with that statement. Ash and Hau locked eyes, almost like they were challenging one another. Serena's eyebrows flew upwards. She only just realized that by completing that final trial on Poni Island, despite having not defeated Hala, Ash had likely just gained his entrance into the vaunted competition he had so been looking forward to. Yet at the same time, his mind also seemed far away from there, focusing on the people around him rather than the next big battle he would be facing.

"Well, let's go meet with everyone," Ash said, finishing the slipping of his vest over his shoulders with a grin. He began to leave from the room, and Serena followed right after. Lillie was scrambling, too, like she wanted to give very quick instructions to them. It did make sense, since they hadn't been there to hear about whatever Gladion had been up to since all of their arrivals.

"They're all in…the banquet hall," she gasped out as she tried to keep up with them. "Well, the  _big_  group is there; to everyone's exasperation, they seem to be eating through the kitchen's stock."

"Good to know. Where are Komala and Nebby?" Ash asked, pressing his hand on the door and stepping into the hallway of the manor at the Aether Paradise. His eyes went back to Lillie for just a few seconds before she answered.

"Resting in my room. Figured Komala deserved it after all the help he gave."

"And the rest of the Pokémon are totally chilling in the courtyard, though I doubt Incineroar and Decidueye are actually relaxing," Hau admitted with a nervous chuckle. Serena could easily agree with that prediction. Though they didn't show it, anytime those two even got within range of one another while not under their trainers' commands, they seemed to like going at it. That was a far cry from Pikachu and Silvally's respectful, but taut, rivalry. Of course, Serena also suspected that it wouldn't be the only rivalry in that courtyard.

"Great, then let's get some food!" Ash said, running a hand through his hair once more, before placing his hat on it. Serena placed a hand to her stomach, realizing just how hungry she was, herself. It was a good thing that Gladion seemed to have ordered Wicke to prepare a banquet for the large group they had brought in. A rushing sound behind them indicated that Brock was catching up, having left his doctor's coat behind and smoothing his hair, like he was going to meet a girl (which, Serena realized, was the norm for him).

That quickly turned out to be the case, as well.

"Ash! Serena!" the familiar voice of Dawn called out. Their group pulled into a stop outside the reception area that led to the banquet hall of the manor. There were quite a few people waiting outside. Serena ran forward, right past Ash, and up to Dawn and May, both of whom greeted her by way of a mutual hug. It had felt like years since she'd last seen them at Ash's birthday party, despite having been just a few months. Ash, too, closed the gap and slapped his hand against Dawn's. "It's like a party all over again."

"With a wonderful dash of seasoning that says the world is-"

"Oh,  _you're_  here," Bonnie drawled out, effectively cutting across Cilan's words. Serena stifled some giggles underneath her hand while Clemont nudged his sister along, like he was ushering her towards the banquet hall. Cilan, looking a little confused at the interruption, chose to follow after them, instantly describing the smells from the room.

"Looks like Ashy-boy has grown a little more," Gary's voice echoed out. Serena turned her head, realizing that the old childhood friend of Ash's was a little down the hall, saluting at them. He wasn't alone in his position, staring at a television screen in the hall. There were a few others there, including Alain and Mairin and…Paul. Ash seemed to notice that, the purple-haired boy staring at him for a moment. Then he smirked, jerked his head, and began to walk off. Ash just blinked at the departure of his rival into the banquet hall. A sudden squeal sounded from inside said hall that sounded like, as Clemont put it, "Hurricane Korrina" going off.

"I feel like I have," Ash said with a smile and an almost conspiring laugh with Pikachu. Serena enjoyed it more than she could admit out loud. Not only did he look a little cute with all his smiles, but he seemed so unburdened. That trial really  _had_  changed him.

"Good on you, then," Gary said, slapping his friend on the back and then turning to follow after Paul. Serena had a slightly better glance inside the banquet hall at this point, and she noticed, from her distance, that the hall itself seemed to connect to the courtyard, and there was a swirling mess of people inside, dressed in black. It was also there that she caught sight of Ash's friends, Misty and Iris, along with other familiar faces like Sawyer, though there weren't too many beyond that. Dawn appeared to catch sight of this noticing.

"Some people were left at Mount Lanakila, just in case," the bluenette answered. "I think your friend Miette is there, too, though I'm sure that quite a few of us will be heading back there sooner or later, right?"

"Something like that. There've been sketchy details," May said, but she seemed somewhat distracted by the smell of food emanating from the banquet hall. Serena wasn't particularly sure how to react in light of that. Lillie stepped close to them, now.

"We'll probably be heading to Mount Lanakila soon, too, don't you think?" Lillie asked of them both, and Ash and Serena gave a start, looking to stare at each other. In light of all the events of the last forty-eight hours, it was like they had completely forgotten about the upcoming events that were huge for the Alola region. Ironically enough, that sort of news was what came to emanate from the television screen. Ash and Serena both turned in that direction just as Lillie started to introduce herself to May and Dawn. At the sound of that report, the couple drew closer to see what was happening on the screen.

"Preparations are underway!" a newscaster was crying out from the screen, with jubilation on his lips. On that screen looked to be a stadium, a dome covering the top of it as it was flecked with snow. Shots soon went towards the interior, looking at the massive number of seats within the stadium and the large, retractable field down below that reminded Serena immensely of the stage during the Peace Tournament. "The stadium's construction has finished for this year's Hope Leilani, sure to be one to remember! On top of that, the first ever Alola League will be taking part with the Lanakila Conference immediately after! It's an event that has the whole region abuzz with activity and anticipation. To talk about it here with me are our two proprietors, Miss Akela of notable fame as a former Ali'i ka Leilani, and this region's great professor, Kukui!"

"Alola, everyone!" Kukui's face called from the screen. It looked like a live report to Serena, which meant that the professor wouldn't be here to discuss their next plan of action, himself. She wondered how that would work out; the Day of Stars was going to happen as soon as the League finished, far as she was aware. His not being here just struck her as odd, at least a little. "Boy, are we in for an exciting time in Alola or what, cousins! Bet you're all using Anticipation!"

"Tell us, Miss Akela, Professor Kukui, this is quite the event to take place, crowning not only the next Ali'i ka Leilani, but also the first ever Champion of the Alola League. However did you manage it, and how is this all to play out? What are the requirements?"

"Managing it was quite simple," Akela said, a smile on her lips she crossed her legs. "We wanted an event for everyone in Alola to celebrate, no matter the hardships they may be going through. Naturally, the Hope Leilani will remain the same, but as it is one side of the Island Pilgrimage to the trials, we figured it would be best to hold the events together, and crown them together at a special awards ceremony to commemorate this vaunted championship, regardless of the decision to hold on to the crown, as it were."

"Woo! Indeed!" Kukui said, that infectious grin still stretching widely across his face as he did so. "We Alolans place a great amount of pride on our bonds with Pokémon and nature, so in order to participate in the League, you'll need to have completed your trials, though those who have completed their Grand Trials will have no need to take part in the preliminary screening rounds and will automatically be seeded into the main tournament. This is an effort to show that strong bond with the region and its Pokémon! I look forward to all the hot battles we'll be witnessing following the Hope Leilani! It's going to be an event to look forward to, cousins, I can promise you that!"

Serena was absolutely sure that wasn't a lie: Kukui certainly meant that it would be a huge event, in more ways than one. Not only was it the first ever Alolan League, but with the Day of Stars falling right afterwards, things were sure to be "exciting", in a sense. There was no doubt that Lusamine would have her eye fixed on the League from within the Ultra Space, too. The two on the screen discussed a little more regarding the flow of events, like the fact that there would be some "fresh and exciting" things to liven up the competitions before Serena returned her full focus to listening.

"People are already pouring in on their own kind of pilgrimage to get tickets for watching the event, and it's sure to be one heck of a blowout!" the announcer on the screen said excitedly. "Even now, the Champions of the Kanto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova and Kalos Regions are making their way to Mount Lanakila, sight of this vaunted and hallowed event! Also with them will be the Kahunas and Captains alike, some of which, as Professor Kukui has informed us, will be serving a special role in the awards ceremony for the winners, if not crowning those taking those positions! You won't want to miss this!"

"We definitely won't," Ash said, gripping his hand into a fist. Serena nodded, breathing in relief, as well. From the way the announcer spoke, it seemed that even if someone won the competition, it didn't mean being chained to the position. There was no doubt that was a good thing for both her and Ash's dreams, even if she wondered how Akela and Kukui would be working that out. Either way, she shrugged, figuring they would work it out and announce it later, allowing Serena to aim her mind towards that goal of victory once again.

"Neither will I!" Hau cheered in agreement with his rival. Both boys turned to look at each other, sending challenging glares to one another. Alain was watching them from his location and smiling, as though he was looking forward to seeing Ash battle again. Serena felt that was a nice thing to see.

"Looks like we'll get to be there this time, then," Brock boomed out, hooking his arm around both Ash and Serena. The honey blonde looked to Dawn, who grinned at her, throwing a thumbs up as Piplup waddled out from the banquet hall. Pikachu leapt from Ash's shoulder to join his own friend. They were all ready for that major event they had been working towards: the Hope Leilani, the Lanakila Conference…and the Day of Stars."

"My hubby's certainly telegenic, isn't he?" asked a new voice to their little gathering. It was a well-known one, and Serena turned to see Burnet there, holding on to her file folder, like she had a month ago. It made sense, now, that Kukui was able to be live from Lanakila, considering that his wife was now here for the upcoming plan in his stead. She quickly noticed them looking at her and she smiled. "There's lots to discuss, now, isn't there? And I have a little more information to share with everyone so that we're ready. I think it's important."

"Good, we have plenty of things that need to be talked about, for sure, and plans to make," Gladion called from the entrance to the banquet hall. Turning to look at him, Serena saw that he was still dressed in his traveling clothes, with Silvally at his side. He and Ash seemed to share a look, especially after Gladion's eyes flicked over to the screen. However, the look was soon gone, replaced with Gladion turning back towards the hall. "Let's hurry it up. There are only a couple days before the Hope Leilani begins, and after that, we won't have the chance!"

"Guess we should get going, then," Ash chuckled out towards Pikachu, on the ground with Piplup. The raven-haired trainer reached out, taking hold of Serena's hand and pulling her in towards the banquet. Serena just let herself be dragged, not really feeling like resisting the pull. In moments, their entire group had joined all of the others in the banquet hall as the volume raised dramatically. The first thing to hold her attention was Brock dashing off for the familiar form of Aria, who was speaking with Sawyer and Korrina. Clemont and Bonnie were also there, but Serena couldn't make heads or tails of what any of them were even saying. All she knew was that Aria looked up at her and smiled before Brock's arrival.

And that was when she noticed those who had taken up the majority of the hall, pigging out at the table in a way that would put Ash to shame.

"Yo! Sittin' in that canyon for a whole month made me hella hungry!" one of the female grunts from Team Skull was shouting out as she shoved some fruit in her mouth.

"Tell me about it, sis! Pass those chips, bro!"

"Nah, man, these chips are mine!"

"Share the chips, idiots," Plumeria's dull tones snapped at her "siblings". Serena looked over at the sound of her voice, eyes scanning the room and all the other familiar faces that were in it, such as Seamus and the rest of Team Nova. Then she saw Plumeria, sitting on a chair with her legs crossed. She looked beyond uncomfortable in the slightly stuffy setting, in complete contrast to her compatriots that were greedily stuffing their faces. Ash, apparently, saw fit to comment on the phenomenon going on around them.

"I guess even Pokémon thieves like to eat, huh?" he asked almost sagely. Serena noticed that he was patting his stomach, his mouth drooling almost as much as May's. Although, neither of them had anything on Team Rocket, who were forcing themselves between some of their rival criminal syndicate members to pile plates high.

"Hey, even we get hungry, too!" Jessie snapped angrily, grabbing some grapes and lowering the vine, whole, into her mouth. That was simply before they backed out of the crowd, showing even more stacked plates, with Meowth already patting his stomach in content.

"Dat food was delicious…"

"Mobba mobba," Wobbuffet agreed, large loaves of bread sticking out from his mouth. Dawn sighed loudly near Serena, smacking her forehead with exasperation.

"Can't believe they're  _still_  following you…" she said with a groan. All it did was make Ash laugh and James to almost grow indignant. He was shoveling in what looked like potatoes before he decided to address the issue, flinging said potatoes onto the floor as he pointed his spoon forward.

"Of course, we will!" he declared proudly. Jessie and Meowth moved to his side, looking like they were taking up some sort of positions. "The twerp and us are always tied together! Where he goes, we will always go, even to the Ultra Space!"

"And da League of course!" Meowth said emphatically, only to be whacked on the head by Jessie. The three devolved, as usual, into an argument that revolved around them chaotically trying to hit one another while yelling at Meowth to "not let slip their intentions". Serena giggled under her hand before realizing that Ash was no longer paying attention, aiming right for the food table. So had Hau, though he was making a beeline for the malasada section, as predicted.

"How many bottomless pits for stomachs do we  _have_  in our group?" Dawn called out. Lillie seemed to find it funny while Serena just smiled softly. The smile slowly slipped off as she saw the giant screens that were in the hall, as if they would be holding a conference in that very space. It reminded her that they weren't here to party; it was just to refuel their stomachs after the grueling battle, and prepare for the one ahead. That made Serena's mind drift off for a second, not towards the Hope Leilani, but towards the information that rested inside her. She'd put off this need for too long now. "So, Serena, you're going to be in this Hope Leilani thing, then?"

"Oh, yeah," Serena answered. Lillie clasped her hands together.

"She's been training really hard for the past month and I know she'll be a total expert! Keoni and Maka and Jessilie don't stand a chance!" Lillie said, pumping her fist into the air excitedly. Serena laughed out, grateful for the support.

"I'm sure there's no need to worry, huh?" Dawn said with her own little grin. Serena returned the grin to her. "We're all around here until that big battle day, so might as well have some fun and watch. Cheer you on from the crowd! It's the first time we've actually just been allowed to be spectators instead of potential opponents."

"Well, I appreciate it a lot," Serena admitted to her. She and Dawn raised their hands and clasped them together in that sort of promise, while Ash and Pikachu returned with a whole entire tray of food. At the same time, the doors to the courtyard opened up and some of the Pokémon that were there came in, including a racing Decidueye and Incineroar, with Rotom following after them and recording the results of their race. In the midst of their comedic tussle, Serena noticed Gladion was with Burnet at the other end of the hall, speaking to Lionel, Aidan and what looked like the entirety of Alpha Squad. Lionel was nodding, pointing up towards one of the screens.

"Sherena'sh gonna be totally awshum," Ash said with a full mouth. He swallowed before allowing himself to continue on. "I'm sure that she'll be able to beat them all, even Keoni. Wonder how he's doing…?"

"I wasn't aware you cared much for Keoni," Lillie said, almost skeptical in nature.

"I don't," Ash admitted, though he was smiling. "Keoni's a jerk, but…I don't know. I think he just wants to prove something? Nah…I'll know it when I see him again."

"That's a…very mature response of you," Serena noted, but Ash shrugged it off, returning to his food. She was actually a little happy to see that; his self-doubt had vanished regarding Keoni, moving instead towards an understanding. The trial had truly changed him for the better, though not the most important part of him, of course.

Serena thought of getting some food herself, but the thought was all but chased from her mind at the sound of loud clapping that filled the hall, calling everyone there to attention. Serena looked away, and everyone did the same, turning towards the source of the clapping that was all too clearly Lionel. The Skull grunts didn't stop eating and chattering until Plumeria snapped her fingers loudly, bringing an end to that. The screens that were erected in the banquet hall had lit up with numerous faces now, including those of Champions and even that of someone identified as Molayne. There were also a few other faces at what seemed to be Mount Lanakila. The planning had already begun for their next great battle.

"Everyone settled? Good," Lionel spoke, his voice booming across the expanse of the room. If they hadn't silenced themselves before, they most certainly had by now. Clemont and Bonnie had broken away from their own little group with Korrina, in order to rejoin with Ash and Serena as they all stepped forward slightly. Most on the screens, to Serena's surprise, weren't taking charge at all, leaving it all up to Lionel, the man who had been there through all of it, so far. He cleared his throat, staring at all of them, lingering for longer on their own group. "We failed. And before we start, there's no tossing blame around on this one. We all played our parts to perfection…there was just an…unexpected consequence that none of us could have perceived."

"Yeah, the Moon Flute was broken," Serena muttered with a bitter taste in her mouth. Ash, who had finished his food (in record time, Serena noted), placed a hand on her back to reassure her, but she was fine.

"Thankfully, unlike past events," Lionel said sharply, a shudder passing through them. They all knew to what failure of a past battle he was referring to. "Well, this time we have a second chance, on the Day of Stars."

"And to that end, a plan has been devised," Aidan now spoke, adjusting his glasses. His own eyes seemed to swivel around the room, no doubt looking at his son. Seamus was staring away, clearly not caring in the slightest that his father was a few feet away, commanding them all. "We originally devised it as a contingency plan, should the preemptive strike fail as it did. Now that it's become necessary, we've made a few revisions. Namely to incorporate Team Skull."

"Yo, whatchu talkin' 'bout?" asked one of the thugs. His question seemed to spark an almost peculiar rebellion, with all of the Skull grunts now questioning the motives of those before them, and why they were even there in the first place. None of them questioned the food, however. The action drew a number of dirty looks from some Aether employees, some sighs from Lionel and Aidan, rather ungraceful facepalms from the Champions that were on the screen, and groans from everyone else.

"Shut up, idiots!" Plumeria finally roared. She stood as she did so, causing her chair to clatter to the floor. The members of Team Skull all shut their mouths at that. "Look, I love you guys, but don't be idiots. We're here to form an alliance with these people."

"But Big Sis…their food is great, but I don' get why we gotta," said another, female, member of Team Skull. "Aren't we, like, totally Team Skull? We don' take orders from nobody unless it's Big Boss Guzma."

"Well, Guzma isn't here right now," Plumeria snapped out. She ran her hand upwards, right through her hair, as her skull hairclips were removed, allowing her long hair to flow out. To Serena's surprise, that simple move made the woman look beautiful, like a graceful (if still poisonous) flower queen. "And if we don't team up with these guys against the threat to come, the boss might never come back…Plus there's the chance that if he does, he won't be the same."

"Big Sis! You can't mean it!"

"I  _do_  mean it!" Plumeria said. She sounded like she was reining in heavy emotion, but managed to hold it together for all of those she cared for. "Now, sit down, shut up and listen. There's a battle for our boss and everyone else coming. Drop the notion of a fresh start, because it won't happen. Right now…we just have to trust in our alliance. We can hold you to that, right?"

"Of course," Gladion was the first to say. Lionel and Aidan stole glances at one another, but allowed the blond leader of the Aether Foundation to continue. "We can't allow ourselves to hold hatred and grudges against each other. Not anymore. That's the whole reason the Hope Leilani and Alola League are happening together: unity. Broken apart, we can't stand a chance. That's something I learned the hard way."

Serena breathed in and out. Gladion seemed to have changed, no longer resigned to forging his own way forward without a care for anybody else. That he could speak those words to Plumeria, spoke volumes. Lionel now stepped forward to address them all once more. "So, that said, we have Team Skull's assistance in the upcoming battle. Thus, I ask each and every person here to be prepared for what is ahead. Mr. Molayne, if you could fill us in on the events of the stars?"

"Er, yes," Molayne said, adjusting his glasses with an embarrassed chuckle, clearly unfamiliar with facing a rather large crowd. "The stars have almost converged. In a little over a week's time, they will overlap, and if what we suspect proves true, the energy that is joined with the Ultra Space will cause rifts, un-closeable rifts, to open."

"That's correct," Burnet spoke. Heads shifted to look at her, but unlike Molayne, she wasn't even close to embarrassed at that moment. "The overlapping of stars, like worlds overlapping together is what will trigger the opening of the portals, allowing the Ultra Beasts through. They are creatures of immense power, requiring the skills of Mega Evolution or Z-Moves to combat effectively if you don't have an obscene amount of trainers in numbers. However, there is more to them that we should be aware of, particularly one creature in particular."

"Nihilego," Serena heard Lillie whispering at the same moment as the professor.

"I wasn't aware of it for some time, considering that Nihilego appeared to have no special properties compared to those other beasts that emerged a month ago. It couldn't cut buildings, pulverize dense objects or move so fast it was impossible to see," Burnet said, and her tone was so serious, that it was clear she had been quite busy the last month. Serena focused sharply, while Ash tensed next to her, he and Pikachu both obviously wanting to hear about the creature they had once fought. "However, after my research, I found the answer. Its effects aren't noticeable because they're rather insidious. Nihilego releases a toxin into the air, or perhaps into its victim's bloodstream for more potency. This lowers inhibitions heavily. Pokémon that are normally docile would become violent; people who would force themselves to work together would start fighting against each other."

"It could become massacre in the streets, then?" spoke a male voice on the screen, causing Serena to turn her gaze. She could see Steven there, Lance and Cynthia huddled around him, as if they were all in the same location. Things had really been moving apace since their reunion the day prior.

"It very well could. Nihilego, any of its type of species that come through the wormholes, and no doubt they will,  _must_  be the first to be dealt with," Burnet instructed them carefully. "Further, exhibit a large amount of caution. For every one of your Pokémon these Beasts seem to defeat, their power grows, much like their own little world."

"Yeah, Nihilego got stronger with every one of my Pokémon it took down in Heahea," Ash noted. Pikachu was nodding, both clearly remembering the day. Burnet was still speaking, however, like she was laying down the objective and the rule for what was to come.

"No matter what it stands as," she said sternly, leaving even the confused Team Skull members riveted, "we absolutely  _have_  to close the Ultra Space and its dangerous properties. Cut off its tie to our world by defeating that which must be keeping it steady at this point: Lusamine. No doubt she'll know we're coming and will pull everything she has against us."

"Then we'll stop it!" Ash called out. Like a magnet, everyone was drawn to him as usual. He stepped forward. "We've faced threats from other worlds before, and we've always won! This time is no different! Zinnia, Michael, and now Lusamine and the Ultra Beasts! We'll do what we've always done for the people we love. Lusamine may not want to understand that, nor will the Ultra Beasts, but we do; the same way we understand them."

"Do you?" Plumeria asked, scoffing a little. Ash looked to her, but didn't waver in his gaze for even a second. "Do you really think you understand what they're trying to do? Guzma doesn't give a damn about making this world nothing if it means getting to be  _something_  on the other side. I may not have been privy to everything, but Lusamine…that woman is nuttier than a fruit cake. She'll genuinely let the Ultra Space gorge on this world just for her own perfect vision. She's holding all the cards; has for years."

"Then tell us what those cards are," Serena now spoke. Most of the eyes were still riveted upon them as they asked their questions. "This involves Michael, who we know all too well. Please, Plumeria, tell us what you know about Guzma, Lusamine, and how to stop them!"

Plumeria watched them, that uncomfortable expression still on her face, but she eventually scowled and folded her arms. "I can't tell you a whole lot. Told you I wasn't privy to everything. Just to hold things up at the Altar of the Sunne to prevent anyone from getting into the Ultra Space. Pretty much screams at you that there's a way to keep it closed for good, and a way to get in. If there wasn't, Lusamine would have had no need to go in there to keep an eye on things, herself. Woman's as controlling as they come."

"I'm not surprised," Gladion spat. Serena tracked his gaze, following it to his sister, who was pursing her lips in thought. There was still heavy unfinished business with her mother.

"All I know is this, and this is just one of the many stories that made up Team Skull," Plumeria sighed out. She walked over to the table, seating herself upon it now and crossing her legs. Her arms remained folded. "When I was a young girl, I wanted nothing more than to be the Ali'i ka Leilani. At the time I was doing my thing, Akela was the current reigning one, and I looked up to her. Couldn't get my Leis, though. I managed one, but after that, it just became impossible. So, I tried to look into trials, taking on Akala's Kahuna at the time and earning my Z-Ring. Even that didn't help me.

"So, I was kicked to the curb, considered trash by so many people because all I had were my battling skills, but apparently wasn't putting them towards anything 'worthy'. I wasn't the only one. Then…Guzma found us. We were all dysfunctional, and he was just idiotic…but we loved each other. Until the day he came up with the harebrained scheme of attacking Aether. I have no idea what happened behind closed doors. All I know is that Guzma emerged from that room with a man and Lusamine. Shortly after, things changed for us." Here, Plumeria sighed once more and ran her fingers distractingly through her long tresses. She really did look much prettier with it down, making Serena surprised she had failed in her quest to try and become the Ali'i ka Leilani.

"We were still the same family at our core, but our actions were more…violent, abrasive. We sacked Po Town with Aether's help. We started delivering Pokémon to the Aether Foundation. Eventually became a part of daily life for us…"

"This man," Serena asked, stepping forward. Plumeria looked to her, though it wasn't like most people had ever stopped doing so. "What did he look like? Did you know his name?"

"Never caught the name but…huh…he looked kind of like you, only with glasses and a goatee. Only saw him once, though, so that's about all I got."

"Michael," Aidan growled out. Serena looked to Ash, both nodding in recognition. They both knew it had to be him, but hearing so merely confirmed in Serena what her next course of action had to be. It was also one that needed to be completed before the Hope Leilani began, meaning that she hoped her information was good. Only that man could potentially answer the questions they needed answered.

"Forget him for the moment," Diantha's voice suddenly echoed from the television. Serena almost jumped, not expecting the Kalos Champion to actually give her input on the matter. "Right now, all points are converging on Alola, are they not?"

"They are," Cynthia spoke calmly, as well. The entire crowd was listening, riveted on what was being said as plans were inching forward on being made. "People are truly flocking to the stadium, so at least we'll have an easy place to protect them, especially with the Kahunas and captains gathering, as well…along with us, of course."

"And that's the plan," Lionel spoke. Heads turned like they were watching a rather intense tennis match, this time fixating on Lionel as he spoke. He seemed to click something, and some of the screens with random trainers were replaced with maps of Alola. "This is the plan for the Day of Stars. As the League finishes, or so I'm informed, we'll move trainers into position. Our Mega Evolution specialists will make the front line at the altar, Z-Move users behind them."

"Yes, the Altar of the Sunne would be the smartest place," Burnet commented. She seemed to be looking at the rather unresponsive (or just uncaring) Plumeria at this point. Serena could tell why: that Team Skull was told to remain at the altar had just as much to do with stopping their assault as it had to do with, perhaps, making sure the first of the portals could open on that Day. "It's the strongest anchor to the Ultra Space, I would presume. Perhaps the Lake of the Moone was as well, once upon a time, but monitoring it showed no further signs, this last month, of any otherworldly presence. Granting, on that day, it will not be limited to just the altar. I'd imagine that many portals will open throughout Alola and the world."

"That's why we're relying on Team Skull," Lionel explained. "What they lack in sheer power, they more than make up for in numbers. You all are our defense, should the Ultra Beasts strike at the very heart of Alola. We already have contingency plans in place for the other regions, should anything break through."

"Then what's like, the main plan, yo?" asked one of the mentioned Skull members. That sent a surprised murmur through all of them, and even Plumeria arched an eyebrow in surprise. "Well, I mean, like, why we doin' this? I don't wanna be monster chow, yo."

"Me, neither, bro! We gotta stick together!"

"The goal is simple: get Ash and the others to the top of the altar and into the Ultra Space. Then hold their ground outside until they can do what needs to be done on the inside," was Lionel's simple instruction. Serena felt a little self-conscious at that. She knew that, as the Tapu's Champions, they'd serve a more than large enough role in taking care of things, but now that it was bearing down upon them…

"We'll take care of things, no problem!" Ash proclaimed loudly, throwing his fist up.

"The only problem is the broken Moon Flute. From what Nebby said, I don't think we'll be able to safely enter the Ultra Space without using it and the Sun Flute together," Clemont pointed out. He seemed to take out the object that was glowing softly, and Serena looked at it. Her nose wrinkled a little at the sight.

"That is a slight problem, but it would seem from research done over the last twenty four hours that there  _is_  a way to repair it. What that is, however, we don't know. Mundane efforts seem to have no effect, after all," Lionel said, looking once more to his companion. Aidan huffed, placing his hands behind his back as he stepped forward.

"The tomes we've looked at only contain knowledge stating that the flutes were forged and reforged many times over the last era or two, but the details on how were only transcribed in ruins around Alola; ones we have not had the chance to examine, nor the time now," Aidan detailed. Serena exhaled loudly, and decided to go all in on what she knew needed to get done.

"But my father might," she said calmly. Lionel and Aidan blinked, and Ash looked to her. "I told you, I'm pretty sure he's at the Lake of the Moone, probably observing the area and monitoring things for himself. Now might be the best time to contact him. If anyone is as cunningly smart as Michael from the other side, it's him. He might know of something, especially if he's the same man that Clemont and Gary suggest offered the plan to use Z-Crystals to get through the barrier."

"It's…" Lionel hesitated, clearly unsure of just what to say exactly, but he eventually sighed. "It's a plan."

"Excellent," Lance called from the screen, putting eyes back on there. "We all have our battle plan set. The G-Men and International Police, along with the Battle Corps of ARC will monitor the League surreptitiously, some as spectators. Everyone else should take the chance to simply enjoy it until the Day of Stars is here. Best to come with the crowd, too."

"Yes, though perhaps Team Skull should take their assigned positions around Alola now, so as to not cause too much alarm on the Day," Lionel suggested. Plumeria shrugged, agreeing with the notion, but obviously feeling no strong reason to say anything more. "Remember, this is the great battle of our time! Under no circumstances should anyone fight alone. Everyone must do so in pairs, or as a commander. Myself, Plumeria and the Champions will lead the charge of protection. Aidan and Alpha Squad will remain behind to coordinate attacks. Meanwhile, Ash, Serena, Clemont, Bonnie, Lillie and Gladion will be escorted by Team Rocket and Hau to the heart of the Ultra Space, as they volunteered."

Serena was surprised to hear that, but Team Rocket looked relatively smug that they had seemed to volunteer. Jessie seemed the most prideful of all, her eyes even glinting with the challenge that they would be sharing all too soon on Mount Lanakila. "We can't let you twerps take credit when we report back to the boss! This way we can claim we took down the Ultra Beasts all on our own."

"Yes, do whatever you want. It's not like Team Rocket is of any interest to us," Lionel said dismissively. However, his eyes grew sharper. "Everyone, this is not to be taken lightly. You have your orders as trainers that have joined us. Serena and her group will locate this world's Michael, but the others should all prepare for battle, because once the Hope Leilani begins, the time for rest will be over."

* * *

Despite the meeting ending soon after Lionel's announcement, devolving into a dance party that Team Skull randomly decided to put on, it still took some time for Serena and the others to depart. Many of their friends remained behind instead of seeing them off (well, they did see them off, but it had more to do with a simple wave than anything else), but it did offer Serena the chance to see a few other old friends once they'd broken to the halls beyond, like Astrid, and even reunite with newer friends, such as Kahili, who happened to be waiting near the elevator to the docks. She wasn't alone in the garden after Serena had packed her bags and begun to leave the paradise, Ash, Clemont, Bonnie and Lillie (redressed in her traveling clothes) near her. Rotom was there, too, resting atop Greninja's stoic head after "exhausting Rotom from taking so many pictures of different Pokémon" (they had managed to retrieve their Pokémon before they left, as well).

"So, everything went well, then, Ash?" Kahili asked, pressing the button for the elevator to come up. In the distance of the garden, those who didn't care for the party taking place were gamboling around in the now setting sun. Among them was Ash's old rival, Paul, leaning against his Torterra with a glass of orange juice. Serena could tell he was watching Ash, though. "You found your answer."

"Yeah," Serena's boyfriend said, calmly and clearly. He certainly sounded in a better place. "I know who I am, and what I want. So, after I win the League, we'll battle again, Kahili. Start tipping it in  _my_  favor."

"That's a fight I'd most look forward to," Kahili offered, reaching her hand out. This seemed to intrigue Paul in the corner of Serena's eyes, because he was standing, shoving his hands in his pockets. Ash clasped Kahili's hand, master and apprentice making a deal with one another. "When we do, I'll learn your answer. I won't pull any punches, either."

"Definitely! In the meantime, I'll see you at the Alola League, and you can watch me win. Right, Pikachu?" Pikachu's cheeks sparked, throwing a fist up. The elevator finished sliding up, just as Paul also seemed to finish his own approach. Serena just looked at Ash and the others, all ready for the small trip ahead. Promises had already been made to meet all of the others at Mount Lanakila, ready for the event of a lifetime.

"Battle me, instead, then," Paul said brusquely, intruding in the conversation. Ash looked at him, the two rivals joining eyes. Paul smirked a little, and Ash grinned back in challenge. "My next League challenge isn't for a while, and I could use the practice before the battle. You look strong enough, if you managed to defeat Ash."

"Sure, I guess, but don't cry when you lose. I don't like going easy," Kahili answered with a crooked grin.

"Trust me, she doesn't," Ash said, rubbing his shoulder like it still smarted from one of the bruises she'd given him. To that, Paul's grin grew wider, ever reminding Serena that this wasn't the one she had known from DARC, all thanks to his eyes. Feeling that the conversation had run its course, Serena gripped Ash's hand and began to pull him off to the elevator with the others.

"I'll be watching in the League, Ash," Paul yelled out as they walked away. Clemont and Bonnie, both, were silent, while Lillie looked completely confused by it all. The blonde had likely only considered that he was one of Ash's old acquaintances. "Don't disappoint."

"Not a chance, Paul! Then  _we'll_  battle, too!" Ash called out with his own grin. Then they stepped on to the elevator, Clemont pressing the button, and the two in the gardens vanished from view. Ash seemed to be in a good mood, like it didn't matter to him whether he won or lost, even if he preferred the former. "I think it'd be great to battle everyone we can again. No better way to see how well they're all doing!"

"Pika pika!"

"Just keep the fighting instinct in for now," Serena told him, squeezing his hand kindly. "I know we're going to find my father, but let's not, you know, attack him."

"Speak for yourself," Bonnie said, punching forward with a fierce expression. "Dedenne, Squishy, Bluey and I are ready for anything! Right, guys?"

"Dene!"

"Brlbl!"

"You must be very nervous," Lillie pointed out, retying her hair a couple different times. "Meeting your father after never having seen him before."

"Bit more complicated than that," Clemont muttered out. Greninja nodded as well. He had decided to stick with Ash once more, now that plans for the future were set, though it was difficult to put him in a pokeball with Ash's party otherwise occupied. Either way, Clemont had a point, one that really mollified them all when the elevator touched down. Serena kept herself facing forward, walking for the boat that Gladion had called for to Ula'ula. None of them spoke again until the boat was on its way to said island, with all of them aboard.

"Thanks for coming with me, everyone. I really do appreciate it," Serena said, gripping Ash's hand tighter than probably ought to have been allowed. "I know it won't be easy seeing  _that_  face again, but this is really something I need to know for myself."

"We all need to know it," Ash assured her. The double meaning of the things they needed to know was all too present in Ash's voice, but she accepted the comfort. That same comfort was enhanced by Pikachu putting a paw on to her cheek warmly. She allowed that calm silence between them all, truly together for the first time in a month, to settle in, and let them all just enjoy the boat cutting through the waters. Before night had fallen, the boat had pulled up on the shores next to Oricorio Town.

The second they stepped on the shores, Ash and Serena both looked up towards Mount Lanakila, looking lively, even from that distance. The summit of their hopes and aspirations was there. Being so close to Oricorio Town, Serena had to wonder if Maka was already there, waiting for her. She had no doubt that Keoni was, and while she didn't look forward to seeing the boy, she still wanted to prove herself against him, at least somewhat. Silently firming up her convictions, Serena turned to the town she'd won her final Lei in and proceeded inward.

The town already seemed to be in its sleepy state for the night, and even Rotom didn't look interested as they walked through the town, on the familiar path that would soon lead to the Lake of the Moone. At this point, however, Rotom decided to comment. "Rotom is bored…the group has already been to this town before."

"Stop complaining," Bonnie snapped at the Pokédex. "We're not here to stroke your ego."

"Bonnie is just jealous." Serena wasn't sure of what the younger girl could possibly be jealous of, but chose to favorably ignore it in the end. They continued on, the signs of the ruins ahead quickly appearing before them.

"Serena, Lillie, how  _did_  you manage to find your dad?" Ash asked. Clemont had taken over mediation purposes between his sister and Rotom, leaving Serena free to answer the question.

"A lot of bartering in the Seafolk Village and some other rumors. Gary and Clemont helped, too," Serena admitted. She looked to Lillie, both of them sharing some of their experiences between them, silently. They were now well into the ruins, Serena noticed, but it felt different. The darkness from before didn't feel to be there, or perhaps didn't hold as much of a malevolence to it. Serena paused for a moment, wondering if, perhaps, it had to do with Nebby's current, unresponsive state. She quickly shook her head and continued on towards the steps that led upwards. Ash still looked more than curious.

"Feels different this time, huh?" Lillie asked. Serena nodded, noticing Ash watching her hair move. It made her blush a little to know that he seemed to like the slightly longer look. She didn't reflect on it long though, as they approached the top, stepping on to it. "It's almost entirely gone…"

"You've been here before?" Clemont asked. Serena nodded once more, stepping forward. The dark portal from before had only been shrunk to the size of a small disc, no larger than a frisbee. It wasn't even moving, completely silent and still, like it didn't care, or it was locked down, waiting for the proper day. Serena swallowed. Things felt like they were moving fast, and she wasn't sure what to think.

Ash reached forward, placing a hand of comfort on her shoulder. "Hey, everything's okay."

"R-right," Serena said, trying to turn away from the portal to face her boyfriend's smiling eyes. They made her feel more at peace, now. She really felt the want to answer everything he asked, and that was what her brain was telling her to do. The rest of her just wanted to vanish in that space with Ash, have a moment alone with him to just share between them, even if thinking about it made her blush. She shook her head, though, figuring they could have their moment before the Hope Leilani. So, her brain won out, and she opened her mouth.

"Serena?" The voice was a sharp dousing of cold water. Each of them but Lillie, who had whirled around, stiffened from the sound. Ash had gone rigid, holding her tightly as his face scowled a little. Serena remained facing him, trying to steady herself at the familiar voice. "I couldn't believe the showings of the Leilani Ceremony I'd seen, but…"

Finally, Serena turned, facing the man that she was familiar with from another world. She wasn't looking for that second of turning, his features burned into her eyes and senses from the past alone. Then, she spoke perfunctorily before opening her eyes, addressing the man she'd never met but knew she had to. "Hello, father."

And when she opened her eyes, there was the very familiar visage of Michael, a beard on his chin and longer hair cascading down to mat his surprised expression. But the one thing that didn't change were the electric blue eyes that confirmed beyond a doubt that the man before them, by what seemed like mere chance, was Serena's father, and he had appeared at long last.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I swore this was going to be a shorter chapter, yet it wasn't…huh. Anyway, transitional to move us towards the big events that are to come. Now that the battle with Team Skull is over, I felt it was important to start filling in the gaps and prepare us for the big battle about to burst. First we have other important things to do, but I liked this chance to relax. But now we have the real Michael…er…Serena's father. What information will he give? How did Serena decide he'd be here? And how will he factor in compared to the original Michael, who proves to be a pest to this day? All that and more next time!
> 
> We're about to enter into the second phase of this three-act finale and I hope it's living up to expectations. Please stick around! So, until we next meet, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	12. An Other

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Probably the last of my heavy exposition chapters ahead and then it's full-force excitement, but this one is still pretty important. That said, it is time for Chapter 12.

Chapter 12

An Other

"How…how did you find me?" Serena had to take a moment. She thought she had prepared herself for this; for seeing the face and hearing the voice of the man that had twisted her life and, more importantly, Ash's life. Of course, they likely weren't the same person, but she couldn't trust that quite yet, not while she was looking at that face and listening to his asked question. She couldn't answer at first, and Ash gripped her tighter. At the same time, Bonnie drew closer to Clemont while Greninja went on the defensive. Lillie and Rotom, both, still looked highly confused.

"I…" Serena tried to speak, but found that she couldn't. Her hands were shaking, memories flashing before her, just as they had in the Ruins of Hope. Only these weren't forced, merely being instinctive. Her fingers curled inward, forming a fist that no one failed to notice. Especially, there was Ash, who reached his hand over to grip her own hand and calm her. Before them, her father also noticed, eyes flicking downward.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound demanding," Michael, or her father…or whoever he was, spoke. "I'm just…surprised."

"So are we," Clemont said. He and Bonnie were moving closer to Ash and Serena now, like they were closing ranks against the face of the one that was their enemy. The man's brow furrowed in interest and confusion, like he could understand why they were regarding him with disdain. Rather, that kind of expression lasted only for a moment.

"I suppose I could imagine," he spoke, reaching up to run his hand through his longer hair, or at least longer than the other Michael's. There was no source of amusement on his features, but he did seem a little pensive with the way his eyes were flicking over occasionally. "This is…unexpected."

"And very awkward. Pleasure to meet you, Rotom is Rotom!" Rotom interrupted, clearly not realizing just what was occurring before them. Her father blinked a little and leaned in towards the floating Pokédex, examining it with scrunched eyes as he scratched at his beard.

"Fascinating…I wasn't aware that technology had come to such an age that a Pokémon could inhabit a Pokédex," he said. His hand tentatively reached forward, like he was going to grab hold of Rotom. Serena's body tensed, and he suddenly stopped, watching her. It took a moment, but he sighed. "Right, sorry. Years in the wilderness, only stepping into cities to send letters on occasion can leave one a little ignorant to the state of technology…and other things…like family."

"Family," Serena breathed. What was she supposed to say? She could only think of Ash's rather awkward reunion with his own father, only it was the reverse in this case.  _She_  had been the one to seek  _him_  out. Ash squeezed her hand again, and now she felt Bonnie grabbing the other side, squeezing that hand. Lillie also turned back, giving her an encouraging smile. Even Greninja seemed to nod his head, the biggest amount of encouragement she'd get from the stoic frog. That was enough for Serena; she wasn't going to squander a chance she'd created when Lillie had all but lost her parents. "I…needed to see you."

"Oh?" he responded, quirking an eyebrow. Whatever surprise he did hold, though, he quickly wiped away for a stern expression to replace it. Serena felt that maybe he knew this wasn't some social call, or a search for a happy reunion. In fact, from the way their body languages were, they may as well have been pretending to not be family at all. "Well, there must be a reason, then. In the same way, there must be a reason you're all so on edge with me. I don't bite. Promise."

"Forgive us if we can't take you at your word," Clemont admitted, still holding fast to a defiant Bonnie. Michael, her father, surveyed the inventor closely with a slightly disturbed reaction adorning his face. "We've met you before."

"Well, a different you," Serena said, finding some courage and confidence in her voice, now. She wasn't going to run away from this. "And that's sort of why I came looking for you. I…Sorry, but I'm not looking for some family reunion."

"I wouldn't have dreamed of it," the man said, putting his hands in his pockets. The more Serena looked, the less she saw of Michael; there was too much of a warmth to him that the other one simply didn't have, even in his moments of playing pretend. Even in the darkness of night that surrounded the Lake of the Moone, she could also see something that the other Michael lacked entirely: love. Years apart, never having even met the man, yet her father was staring at her with a sense of pride and care. It was the same way she supposed Jack Ketchum had felt for  _his_  child. "It is nice to see my daughter grown, though. I hadn't even known you were on an adventure until recently."

"It's a recent thing," Serena answered. Their conversation felt rather stilted and awkward, but Serena supposed that was the only way for it to truly come off in the first place. Any other way would have been strange, after everything. "Um…so…anyway…"

"Right, you sought me out for something. Is it to do with the Day of Stars?" Serena blinked, just as Ash let go of her. She knew they weren't the only ones surprised by the man's statements. Lillie, however, was the first to say something.

"You know about that?" she asked. Michael turned his head to her and nodded, taking his hands and putting them behind his head with a small sigh.

"I've been preparing for it for months," he answered. Serena swallowed; she supposed that no matter what version it was, both Michaels were incredibly cunning, overall. He noticed this and sighed again. "Look, Serena, I can tell you're uncomfortable around me."

"You…could say that," Serena said. She still didn't know how to broach the topic that was all too clearly on their minds. Part of her thought that she might have needed more ample time to prepare than shortly before all of this. Ash once more placed a hand on her shoulder in comfort. "But, it's not because you're my dad or anything. Trust me. I  _was_  the one that searched for you, so…"

"Understood, but seeing your deadbeat dad probably can't be pleasant," the man answered. He looked off to the side, like he was considering his words. "Not that I meant to be away but…guess I have problems. Would offer an apology, but it seems too little, too late, now."

"I don't think Serena would hold it against you," Ash spoke up in the absence of her own voice. It helped to ease just a little bit of the awkwardness surrounding them. "Not like she's the only one in this group who didn't have their dad around."

"Mm," her father replied, accepting Ash's response while looking him over. For some reason, Serena actually felt a little nervous, as though it was like every other girl, with her father checking over her boyfriend before potentially delivering a chastising warning. Of course, she wasn't just like every other girl, and nor was her relationship with Ash or her father. "Then, why are you all looking at me like I'm going to try and kill you?"

"Because you're-"

"Bonnie!" Clemont scolded his sister, placing a hand over her mouth. Ash let go of Serena and stepped forward towards the man. She realized it must have been difficult: her own father had the same exact face as the one who had ultimately ended  _his_  father's life. He could have hated the man for that, yet Ash seemed to stare him in the eyes without any hint of rage.

"You really don't know?" he asked. Her father tilted his head and then shook it. At this, Ash shook his own head and looked at Pikachu, both seeming to draw strength from one another. "The you from another world killed my dad."

"Another…me?" he said, looking almost confused. However, after a moment, his eyes seemed to lighten up as realization hit. "Tell me everything…Ah, but not here."

"Why?" Lillie asked, hitching her bag. She was clearly ready to listen, despite her own questioning. Michael (Serena really wished she had something else to call him by) looked at Lillie, and then pointed at the small black portal.

"Away from prying eyes. I came to check on it for the evening, since it's been acting restless as the Day draws near," he explained. Serena was surprised a little, but at the same time, there was elation. Elation that finding her father was seeming to have been a very good idea, after all. Ash and Clemont seemed to share the sentiment. "I'm going to guess that's what you came to see me about, though I'd no idea you were working with it in mind."

"Something like that," Serena laughed out, easing more of that gripping tension inside her. He nodded.

"Well, I'd love to hear, and tell, just not here. It's too close, too much to be overheard by it," the man responded, turning around and aiming for a set of stairs that was perpendicular to the one they had walked up. Serena's eyes narrowed.  _It?_  The man stopped. "Oh, and if it's too uncomfortable for you to look at me as 'Michael', just call me Y. It's a pseudonym I've been using for many years now to hide my identity. Just don't ask the reason: more of a childish fantasy than anything, ha ha."

At least that made things easier on Serena, and she began to follow after her father, down the set of stairs. Clemont and Bonnie were still clearly tensed by the sight of the man, but Dedenne undoubtedly gave Bonnie courage, because she stopped her body shaking and made sure to come and stand next to Serena as they walked after Y. Greninja remained on high alert until they seemed to finally be out of the zone of the small portal. No one talked a moment, veiled in the darkness of night, and Serena took the chance to examine the space they were traversing. These stairs looked all too similar to the other side they had walked up, if perhaps replete with more vines than expected. It also looked to lead to a more natural road. Y (which Serena decided she  _would_  call her father, for ease and separation) turned sharply down a path, and Serena looked to see that there was a fire ahead, as if at campsite. It reminded her of when she felt she'd been watched here a month ago.

"So…this other me," Y began, sounding all too serious, "tell me more about what happened. I've been so busy in my explorations that I've been out of much contact for years. I'll still send letters to Grace, but even that's become less frequent as of late."

"You correspond with mom?" Serena asked, not having expected that. Y didn't answer right away, almost looking embarrassed, wearing a similar blush as herself when Ash said something romantic.

"Ah, yeah. I can be a hopeless romantic sometimes," the man admitted. It hurt inside Serena's heart a little. Perhaps it was his smile, but she felt more that even if she didn't know her father all that well, he was a version that Michael could have been…if he hadn't become an omnicidal maniac who cared about nothing and no one, even his own daughter. "I know it's easier to pick up a phone and call but…I tend to get lost in things. I don't even collect letters from Grace anymore, so I, uh, wasn't aware you'd left home until I saw you performing in the Heahea Ceremony."

"Yeah, that one," Serena almost laughed out. Y stopped here, and he looked back at her. He gazed over her figure, smiling a little.

"I'll admit, I was a little worried, though I tried to convince myself that it couldn't be you. Same for when I could have sworn I saw you here a little over a month ago," he told her, scratching the top of his head a bit. "Though, I can see you clearly now, and it sets my mind at ease. Years ago, Grace used to talk about how fragile you were, almost, until you met a boy in Kanto. Should I take the guess that that was you, Ash Ketchum?"

"Uh…you know me?" Ash asked, pointing to himself with surprise.

"I've been in the wilderness, not living under a rock," Y laughed out. He glanced between the two of them now, once more in that scrutinizing mode. "Though I think you're more than a boy from Kanto to my daughter, now. Am I to be expecting grandchildren soon?"

"Say wha-?"

"Just a little joke!" he exclaimed at the bright red looks on their faces. Bonnie seemed to find it all more amusing than anyone else there. Even Rotom appreciated it, calling it a great prank. However, Y easily restored the sense of tension with a sigh. "All that said, you're not a fragile flower…you fought in Heahea, didn't you?"

"I did," Serena said, reaching a hand up to her chest. Looking at her father, even in the dark night, she could see a couple emotions in his eyes as they reflected the lake in their irises: pride, worry, happiness, sadness and just a tinge of regret. "And that incident has led to now."

"I see…I would guess, then, that my 'other self' was behind it…or is?" Y asked. He was starting to move again, like it was now imperative that they were to continue along the path to what was likely his campsite. Serena's gaze flew out to the lake that surrounded the ruins they were leaving. It was certainly a beautiful sight, reflecting the full glory of the celestial heavens that were above them. She pursed her lips as Ash began to answer.

"Yes," he said simply. "He was…I don't even know how to explain it. Do you know, Pikachu?" Pikachu just shrugged, himself also unable to come up with the words, and in turn looked to Greninja, who seemed disappointed to  _also_ not have an answer.

"Michael was…he was a very cold man," Serena answered her father.

"A real meanie! He kidnapped me and Dedenne and…and…" Bonnie couldn't seem to get the words out, twisting at her hands almost angrily. Y slowed, watching her desperation with concern. Serena actually felt like crying at that; perhaps it was an act, but she had the feeling it was real. Knowing that so much could have been avoided if he had been like this, that Reeree wouldn't have had to die, maybe even her Ash…it drove a stake through her heart. "Well, we've gotten stronger! We won't let anyone kidnap us again!"

"Michael was a vile man," Clemont spoke sharply, and perhaps a little too harshly, given that Y brought a complete halt to his steps. They still hadn't completed the journey around the lake to the campsite, but that didn't matter in the face of the truth coming out. Maybe it was a little harsh, but Serena knew they had to share it if they were going to impress how urgent and out of necessity their visit was. "He didn't care about anyone or anything. He used people, twisted their pain, all for himself and what he wanted."

"And what did he want?"

"For everyone on this world to die," was Ash's cold answer. Y offered no reaction at that, or if he did, he was masking it better than most. "He believed that if this world died, his would be safe."

"A ludicrous notion…" the man stated, making Serena's eyebrows fly upwards into her hair. "Though, I would imagine he had some sort of reasoning behind it…we always do."

"Some ancient documents he found," Clemont instructed him. Y nodded, like that would about do it, and his feet began to pick up again. He seemed to be thinking, scratching at the beard on his chin.

"If I would take a guess…happened shortly after Serena was born?" Serena nodded with Ash at the question, and she noticed the spark of recognition in her father's eyes. "Yeah, I could see it. At the time, I was looking for some ancient ruins to prove a theory on multiple universes or some such thing…lost on me now, it's been so long. Anyway, something must have happened because there was a cave in. I barely got out alive and never saw what was beyond. Disappointed, I moved onward. You guys have seen Reflection Cave?"

"What's Reflection Cave?" Lillie asked, almost like she was feeling a little left out of the conversation at this point. Her puffed out cheeks seemed to indicate as much to Serena, at least.

"Ooh, we know! That's where the mirror version of us was, right?"

"Exactly, young lady!" Y pointed out with a little wink. "I looked into little stuff like that, and then, one day, I stumbled on Alola. Thought it was chance, though now it might have been fate. This was…roughly five years ago now, and boy was there a lot to explore and examine; enough to cut me off from most of civilization for years. Maybe that's why I didn't hear about my counterpart…I'd imagine you've all been hurt terribly by him."

"We have," was Serena's terse response. He looked back at her, and their similar-looking eyes met. There was a protectiveness, mixed in with the resignation, there. "But…we've moved on. We've pushed past the pain, all of us. It still hurts sometimes, but we wouldn't be us without it."

"When did my daughter become such a grown-up?" Y laughed out. Serena couldn't laugh with him, especially at seeing Lillie's concerned face. She had to have been thinking about her own mother, and the events that had happened to change so much of their lives in the end. Y eventually realized this and frowned. "Anyway, I know saying it won't convince you, but I am not that Michael. Perhaps, if I had been pushed in his direction, I may have given myself to his methods, but…instead, I played the long game. Though, it sounds like he's been doing much the same in Alola, as well."

"From beyond the grave, too," Ash sighed out. Y offered a nod to accept that as finally the campsite arrived before them. Stepping in, it was like stepping into a whole different world. There was a single tent, yet along with it were numerous makeshift desks and other canopies overhead. Some papers were strewn about the area, like it was in a constant state of dishevelment whenever Y was around. There was also a large box that was gleaming with a silver glow.

"Are those…Z-Crystals? !" Clemont exclaimed, running into the camp and up to the box. Without waiting for Y's response, he pulled out one of the shining items, revealing what looked like a Steelium-Z. "It was you! You were the one to…"

"Yes, I was," the man responded, though he looked a little distracted. Finally, he seemed to see what he wanted. "There you are, Hydreigon. Everything good here?"

"Drei…" the Brutal Pokémon growled out, floating into view. It was another confirmation that he was simply a different Michael. Y nodded, and then proceeded further into his camp to pull out some large buckets, turning them over so they could seem to act as seats for them all.

"You'll have to forgive the impromptu seats. I'm not used to visitors, obviously," he said, pulling up a chair for himself. The others all sat upon the buckets provided while Rotom floated to take a picture of Hydreigon and Greninja remained on standby, scanning the area. The three-headed dragon looked amused, but did nothing to stop the Pokédex. "To answer your question, Clemont, was it? Yes, a few months ago, I was researching connections for the growing darkness between the Altar of the Sunne and here, the Lake of the Moone, where I discovered about Z-Crystals, the items for Z-Rings and their connection with the power from the Ultra Space. Left a little clue behind, though your reaction tells me you figured it all out."

"But I don't get it," Ash said, leaning forward. "If you've been researching all of this, why not step forward earlier? You could have been real helpful in the battle against DARC."

"DARC?" Y asked, looking nonplussed. None of them decided to answer, considering the point was relatively moot. "Well, truth be told, I just don't like being in the spotlight. Difference between us, huh?"

"If you want to look at it that way," Serena said, chuckling nervously. She was feeling more at ease with him now, even if there was still some awkwardness there from the suddenness of the meeting. Y breathed in and then exhaled loudly.

"Anyway, I've spent a lot of time here, mostly, monitoring the space at the abandoned temple for the last five years. Sometimes I'll travel off to other areas, like the ruins of the guardian deities, or into cities to send a letter, watch news reports, but I genuinely am not very aware of the goings on in the world. Only knew about you because of letters from Grace back in the day and a report on your Top Four placement in the Sinnoh League, Ash. I might have heard about something in Kalos some months ago, too, but I was already too entrenched here by then," Y was certainly throwing a lot of information at them, but Ash seemed fine with it. Serena was keeping up as well, even if Bonnie was bored and poking at Hydreigon, who seemed to like the attention.

"But, if you were studying the Ultra Space, why not team up with the researchers in Heahea?" Lillie asked, holding a finger in the air in thought. "Or even the observers at Mount Hokulani?"

"Because I wasn't examining that in particular," Y told them, crossing his legs. "Though…I won't say I didn't have my effects. You said my counterpart was cunning and manipulative, yes? Well, I can't say I lack all of those traits. I could tell from what happened here at the Lake of the Moone six years ago that a great conflict was being cultivated in Alola, though I wasn't aware of all its contents. I set my own plan in motion, though. I…er…may have mentioned some things to that observatory about the portals beyond, and the moving celestial patterns, at least when I drew the connections between them. Can't say I was much successful, and I did it in a way that those involved would never know  _I_  was involved. But like I said, I was looking into other worlds and things and the Ultra Space topped the list after the disaster six years ago."

"Six years…that's when my mother started to change…" Lillie said, now clasping her hands and pursing her lips. Y glanced at her, but his own eyes mostly remained between Ash and Serena. He sniffled a bit and moved his jaw before speaking once again.

"So, can we ask the honest question here, before getting to the heart of the matter?" Y asked, making everyone look at him seriously. The air felt heavier now, any more motions of reunion off the table in light of what was soon approaching Alola. "You tracked me down because you need information and no other reason. Can't imagine why you would think of me, so those are the questions: why, and how?"

"Well, the how  _and_  the why are easy enough," Serena breathed out, putting herself into a calming state so she could continue to converse effectively. "After we learned that Michael was the one behind Lusamine's actions concerning the Ultra Space, I thought…well, I thought that maybe the two of you went down similar paths, and that…maybe you could help. It seemed silly at first, but the more Lillie and I searched, the more obvious it became that we were right."

"The people of Seafolk Village had heard of someone looking into the altar," Lillie explained. Y watched her carefully as she did so. "So, we got some information on the person, which we figured was you, because they said he looked a lot like Serena."

"You eventually drew the connection between the altar and the lake, then?"

"Eventually," Serena admitted. "Not at first, and even when we did, there was never a guarantee you'd be there. So, we started searching near trial sites, just to be safe, including other abandoned places. We even got some help from Samson Oak and spent time at the library in Malie City when the rumors reached us of a fire by the Lake of the Moone, which I recalled from our visit here a month ago. In the end, I waited to see you, though, because…well, I wanted Ash with me."

"Oh," Ash said. Pikachu was nodding on his shoulder, though Ash remained tense as Y looked over him one more time, clearly approving of him. Eventually, though, her father stood and began pacing, like he wasn't sure what to say to her. It couldn't have been easy.

"Hmm…where do I start, then?" he questioned, stroking his beard, occasionally tucking his rather lengthy honey blond hair behind his ear. It reminded Serena of something  _she_  would do; something she'd actually picked up from her mother during Rhyhorn Racing. Serena looked up at him, blinking a little. "Well, you clearly came here to get some answers as to what this other Michael may have done, yes? I think I might have some from my own special research. Maybe counterparts are drawn together like magnets if they've been to the same spaces or something."

"I could certainly believe that, opposites attracting and all," Clemont commented. Serena nodded with his agreement; they  _had_  met their own counterparts that had come to their world and invariably interacted with them, after all. Perhaps that had even been part of the reason Paul had come to take part in the battle on their side, now. Y stopped stroking his beard.

"Then let's kick it off with six years ago. You say this is when your mother, Lusamine, began changing?" Lillie nodded, but didn't say any more. "Yes, that makes sense. No doubt you've heard by now of the crisis that Alola faced six years ago. A great portal of darkness erupted from this very spot, actually. It sent the whole region into a tizzy. The seas were disturbed, and there were avalanches, sandstorms, all manner of disaster. At the time, I'd yet to come to Alola, but researching what I was researching, I eventually found that it was directly linked to a portal to the Ultra Space that was opened at the ruins here, so closely tied to the celestial beings that are Alola's legendary Pokémon."

"Natural disasters, huh?" Ash asked, though his mind was already looking to be rather confused, judging by his face. Serena just patted him on the shoulder to tell him not to worry too much about the finer details. She doubted they would matter much anyway. "Hau said his parents died six years ago in a fishing accident…could they be connected?"

"Likely," was Y's response. "From what I understand, it left devastation in its wake. Many people lost their lives, though I don't believe the people ever knew what had truly caused it, mostly thanks to the Kahunas that were chosen by the guardian deities at the time making their stands here at this very spot, fighting the darkness."

"But how did the darkness open up?" Rotom asked, clearly intrigued by the conversation now. Serena wondered if it was really just interested in more about the Ultra Space. Y regarded the machine a moment before answering.

"My guess, and it's an educated one given my studies," Y continued on. He seemed to grow tired of pacing, for he sat back down and clasped his hands together. "You've heard of the Sun and Moon Flutes?"

"Boy, have we ever!" Bonnie said, jumping back into the circle. The young girl seemed to have now improved her mood around Y. At her words, Serena reached into her own bag and pulled out both flutes, including the broken Moon Flute. Y regarded them with his eyes, but didn't offer to take them at all. He just used it to continue on with his guesses.

"Okay, the flutes share…special properties with the Z-Rings, especially those in particular that are given through the guardian deities, and  _only_  those. It seems confusing, but what happened in the distant past, I'd imagine, was that the Ultra Space was formed from the remnants of broken worlds. How the beasts came into existence, I believe, is unimportant, so much as what they live off now: destruction. I believe that in order to protect the worlds, with their champions, the guardian deities sealed off the Ultra Space by creating and using the flutes. That was in ancient times."

"That would explain why they resonate with the power of those particular Z-Rings," Clemont pointed out. Ash's face was scrunched up, but he still seemed to be following.

"So, you've witnessed the phenomenon, then…" Y commented. Serena watched her father, feeling more elation with every word that he was speaking. "You guys are making this way easier to explain then, ha ha…"

"Well, it was a lot of trial and error," Ash admitted. Pikachu seemed slightly bored with the exchange, slipping into Ash's lap while Dedenne snored away in Bonnie's pouch next to a lethargic Squishy and attentive Bluey. Greninja appeared to still be keeping watch.

"That's what all of this is. I'm sure that's exactly what this other Michael did, as well," Serena's father followed up with. At his words, he pointed forward to the flutes in Serena's hands. "I believe, given the name of this place, he took the Moon Flute to these ruins and played it with the intention of opening a portal to the Ultra Space. I can't say he succeeded, but given the state of the stars that day,  _almost_  converging, he made  _something_  happen."

"This darkness?" Lillie questioned. To this, Y nodded and he sighed before shifting his finger to point solely at the Moon Flute.

"Thing is, those flutes were meant to be used  _together_ , and it was for that reason that it likely broke." Serena had to stop herself from frowning vehemently; Michael had a singular way of ruining everything in their life, whether he had planned it that way from the beginning or not. Clemont looked pensive, obviously trying to figure it out the quickest, out of all of them. "Regardless, it made the darkness escape, one that was only beaten back by the Kahunas of the time. That otherworldliness was a borderline, though, that when crossed, it signaled the eroding of lines between our world and the Ultra Space, which the Tapus had kept so heavily sealed and entrusted to the Champions over the eras."

"In the end," Clemont mused, "Gary and Burnet's research was right. The Ultra Space  _must_  be comprised of so many other worlds that have been destroyed, and now that the other portals were sealed, it weakened any overlapping seals on the Ultra Space within, which is what will make it wrench open now."

"You have a solid grasp of it, Clemont," Y spoke. Clemont appeared taken aback, but his lips went into a thin line, still trying to think one or two steps ahead. Serena just felt elated that finding her father hadn't simply been an exercise in futility. She also thought at rapid speed about the Moon Flute, how it had broken from undue strain. The Sun Flute had likely been spared at the altar thanks to their Z-Power, and Michael had likely returned the Moon Flute to where he'd found it because he knew it would be useless. Perhaps he hadn't planned it, but he'd made things a lot more complicated to stop.

"Okay, but what about this whole darkness thing? I mean, just 'cause Michael went and opened these things didn't mean anything at the time, right?" Ash asked. Y looked at him before shifting his gaze around to take them all in. His fingers began to tap on his knee.

"Honestly, I think that darkness is  _everything_ ," Y explained to them. "Whatever it was, it hasn't appeared in any of the other portals that have opened. Not at Resolution Cave, and not in Heahea. That it came forth here and at all, it must be at the core of everything, but lacks the energy to be substantiated…at least, in our world. Perhaps, in time, it could accrue enough energy to do so, and that may be what Lusamine is trying to do. If she can make the chasm split wide open, the Ultra Beasts may gorge on this world until the Ultra Space is full."

"But…what's this dark thing?" Bonnie asked, her eyes glaring ahead. Above her, Rotom was trying to calculate what was being mentioned, making rapid fire guesses on its screen.

"No idea, just that it's the crux of the Ultra Space without the Celestial Beasts to maintain it," was the answer. Serena suddenly slid her gaze over to Lillie, the familiar phrase of the Celestial Beast echoing in her head. Memory of the great lion atop the Altar of the Sunne engaged within her mind. Things were making much more sense. "If you want me to guess, I'd imagine that it is the void of space from stars, reflecting their light…like a husk of the legendary Pokémon that Alola once revered."

"You mean Nebby," Lillie spoke. Before Y could ask just what Nebby was, Lillie had slung her bag around and pulled out the still inert form of the creature that was like family to them. "He was once a little Cosmog until my mother drained him of power to open the Ultra Space."

"Fascinating…so this must be a cocoon-like form?"

"You've seen Nebby before?" Ash asked. Y looked up, clearly thinking on how best to answer the question.

"I've seen  _a_  Cosmog, through the portal at the ruins here," was his response. Lillie's gaze snapped up, as well, like she recognized the words spoken. They all did (unless one counted a still confused Bonnie and Rotom). Nebby had told them all about freeing its counterpart, and now those words and understanding were being made plain. "I believe it's held prisoner by the darkness, and the only way to get it out…"

"…is with the flutes," Clemont finished, huffing a sigh out. "Of course. We use both the flutes here to open a portal inside, just as we would at the altar, pull the other Cosmog out, take it to the altar and then their power will return enough to escort us inside the Ultra Space to take out Lusamine and Guzma."

"It's a great plan, Clemont!" Ash said jubilantly, though he then rubbed the back of his head. "Uh…but…the problem is the flutes."

"More than that, the second you open a portal here, the darkness  _will_  try to take Cosmog back. We could hold it off, but you'd need to get as far away as fast as you could," Y assured them. Serena now stood, as did Ash. To no one's surprise, Lillie did the same, looking positively fierce.

"That doesn't matter!" Serena snapped loudly. "Now isn't the time for us to worry about ourselves when the whole world is at stake. Michael obviously set things in motion to destroy everything that we love in this world. He awoke the darkness that tried to take Nebby for its own power; he manipulated Lusamine, who controlled Guzma, and then he even prevented our efforts from succeeding on the preemptive strike. No more! I'm not standing by and letting him ruin any more lives! We  _will_  save everyone, including Nebby."

"The only question is how," Lillie said emphatically. " _That's_  the real reason we came to you. How do we save Nebby and get to my mother?"

Y looked up from his place on his chair, staring at all of them and their looks of utmost determination. Behind her, Serena heard Clemont stand, as well, while Bonnie drew closer to her brother, looking just as fierce as the rest of them. Rotom floated into the ring of firelight, but didn't say anything, given the gravity of the situation, all while Greninja faced forward towards their group in support. As Y continued to watch them, like he was searching all of their intentions, his Hydreigon floated back towards him, one of the heads picking at a loose berry on the ground. There was silence, except for the wind over the water and the crackling of the fire. Eventually, he started laughing.

"You kids are too much," he said, every syllable laced with chuckles. "Sorry, I guess I can't really call you children. Not when  _you_  came to  _me_. If only my generation was as proactive as yours. Maybe things would be different, yeah?"

"Well, in the end you guys are still the ones finding all the answers," Clemont admitted. "We just seem to be doing the leg work." Serena couldn't really disagree with that, but she knew that Clemont's research project with Gary was what had made the original attempt at a preemptive strike possible in the first place. Her father seemed to share these sentiments.

"Nah, you all are the ones to look up to. Sure, we find some info, but you guys put it together and do the necessary work to save everyone. Meanwhile, I've been parked by a lake, secluded from all the goings on in the world," Y admitted with what looked like a sense of shame. He sighed. "Well, guess the time has come for me to step away from the moon and into the sun. Or is that too cheesy?"

"And I thought Rotom's attempts at practical jokes were bad…" Bonnie commented as she slapped a hand to her forehead.

"Bzzt! What is Bonnie saying? ! Rotom's pranks are things of legend! Legend! Rotom has even recorded some now, for posterity, and added them to Rotom's backup data drive to live ever on!"

"I'm still trying to find its whipped cream prank that it played on Hau and me, so I can delete it," Clemont sighed out. That caused an elated chuckle to travel through the group, no more so than Y, who seemed to be enjoying human contact after so long. That made Serena happy, even if she didn't say it out loud. She knew Ash could tell, though: she was glad her own father wasn't as cold and unfeeling as Reeree's had been.

"So, the Day of Stars is almost upon us, huh?" Y finally spoke, coming to stand now. He approached Lillie and Nebby, sending a questioning look to the blonde. She nodded, allowing him to extend a hand and touch it. He frowned for a second, but continued to examine Nebby's motionless form. He started to nod at a point and then turned away, towards one of his tables. Serena's eyes watched him carefully as he began flicking through papers, like he wanted to find a specific one.

"How much do you all know about the connection between Cosmog, er…Nebby and the flutes? Just those two," came his question as he settled on a particular stack papers. Shortly after, he began leafing through it.

"Well," Lillie chose to answer for them, tapping her chin in thought. As she did so, she was balancing Nebby with her other arm, which Serena found to be impressive. "We know they're connected, because with the Z-Rings from the Tapus and the Sun Flute, we were able to talk with him."

"Yes, yes," Y said, agreeing with their statement. Or maybe he wasn't even paying attention. Serena didn't know. "Aha! Here we are!"

He whipped around, having taken out a small length of parchment, old and yellowed from years and use. It looked to be taken from a book, thanks to its ripped edges, but he was unfurling it before them, allowing them all to lean in and look at it. Serena peered closely, noticing there were all different sorts of illustrations on the parchment. They appeared to mostly be things that looked vague, if one wasn't aware of the true meaning behind them all. Pictures of the flutes, and a cloud, then followed up with a lion, a bat and what looked like a separated dark splotch. More importantly were pictures of what was probably the Lake of the Moone in its heyday. There also were other symbols around it, and swirls, that vaguely reminded Serena of the Tapus.

"Okay, so I told you that the flutes were made to seal off the Ultra Space in ancient times using the power of the Tapus," Y explained, pointing to one of the diagrams. Ash and Pikachu looked a little clueless regarding it, but kept listening anyway, nodding their heads. Rotom was recording everything. "Your Z-Rings, from your explanation, are made with the same properties and power, and considering they resonate with Nebby's power, I'd imagine they can do two things: restore it to its full power as the legendary Pokémon of Alola from ancient times, and open a way into the Ultra Space.

"The second of those two things, though, should be done here first. You'll want to grab the other Cosmog, then get to the altar. Should work there. This area is too broken and watched by the darkness to make that remotely successful here."

"What about the Moon Flute, then?" Serena asked of him. To that, he slid his finger further down until it was showing a picture of the two altars, surrounded by the swirls that represented the Tapus.

"The flutes seem to have been made using the Tapu's power, so it stands to reason they can be restored using that same power converging on a single spot." Here, Y tapped the parchment even quicker. Clemont was nodding rapidly while Bonnie and Ash's heads were tilted in confusion. "In other words, to restore the Moon Flute that was made here, we must have it  _here_  and pour the power of the guardian deities into this very spot. Play both the flutes, open the portal, pull Cosmog out…"

"And we know the rest," Clemont confirmed. He seemed pensive in his statement however, breathing in and nodding. "We'll have to be ready, and I'd imagine the only way the Tapus could know what to do and where to act, is if their champions beseech them, or something like that."

"That makes things tight," Ash now said, folding his arms and sighing. "Getting attacked, splitting up  _and_  needing to make it back to the altar before the Ultra Beasts could do too much damage…"

"We can do it!" Bonnie piped in. Dedenne and Squishy joined her in praising that sense of initiative. "Clemont and I can handle things here while you guys see to the Tapus!"

"I suppose I could aid in that as well. I've been monitoring the portal here to make sure it wouldn't burst too wide, so I'm well aware of the damage that could be caused, especially on the Day of Stars," Y said. Serena looked up at him, eyes wide at his statement. He grinned at her. "Well, I'd be a pretty poor excuse for a father if my own daughter asked for help and I didn't give it. So…you can count on me. Oh, but best to do all that preliminary stuff  _before_  the portals rupture."

"Th…thanks," Serena uttered. She felt a heat on her face, or maybe it was warmth at knowing her father wasn't a wicked man. Ash placed an arm around her, as if to comfort her or reassure her decision. They heard a clattering and saw that Y had placed a bag on the table, beginning to stuff it full. "Uh…what are you doing?"

"Packing up?" he stated with light confusion. They all stared at him, and he looked a little embarrassed. "Er…no? Aren't we going to battle?"

"Someone's eager to fight," Bonnie said slyly. Serena could only giggle underneath her hand, which caused her father to smile. In turn, that smile made all of the others do so, as well, making her heart soar.

"Well, you all seemed to talk like you were preparing for some big final battle, and you'd be meeting up…wherever you're meeting up."

"We are, but not right away," Ash said, stepping forward and away from Serena. He held a hand out, like he was fully connecting the bridge between them and accepting the assistance that her father could give. He seemed to like that, reaching out and taking her boyfriend's hand. "We're definitely meeting at Mount Lanakila, but not for the battle."

"It'll be time for the Hope Leilani and the first ever Alola League!" Lillie cried out excitedly. Serena could feel the waves of enthusiasm coming from her. Ash and her father separated hands while her boyfriend threw his behind his head.

"Totally…though there's a promise I have to keep, so I won't be heading there right away," Ash stated. Serena looked at him, the only one of their group not staring in surprise. She had a very distinct feeling that she knew which promise he wanted to keep, and it was certain to be an exciting one. Greninja appeared to sense and know what it was, as well, as he and Pikachu shared a determined look between each other. "Once I've done that, though, we'll be heading there so Serena can become the Ali'i ka Leilani and I can win the League."

"Sounds exciting," Y laughed out with great mirth. "Then…if you don't mind, I'd love to watch you in the Hope Leilani. Only if you don't mind, of course."

"Oh, no, it's fine," Serena said, waving her hands in front of her face with a smile. "I…I'll look forward to having you there."

"You might want to avoid Lionel and Aidan, though," Clemont chuckled out. Ash, Serena and Bonnie both nodded while Pikachu and Dedenne emulated their trainers. Lillie looked to Rotom and both gave up on trying to understand all the nuances of these particular reunions and relationships. "I don't think they'd want to see Michael's face, even if you're trying to help us. Leave relaying the information to us."

"Just to make sure…" Bonnie said, sidling up with a suspicious expression under lidded eyes, "why  _are_  you helping us?"

"Because I love this world," was Y's immediate answer, heartfelt in every word. He shifted his gaze over to Serena and smiled. "It's the world my daughter and wife live in, after all. Don't need a better reason than that. Plus…if my other self was as bad as you all say, I guess I should try to 'atone' and clean up some of his mess, no?"

"Well, whatever it is, glad to have you on  _our_  side instead of against us," Ash admitted, now rubbing the back of his head. Pikachu laughed a little and snuggled right in on his shoulder. Y nodded, hitching his now full bag on his shoulders.

"Well, then, I can leave you with all that information to be shared for the battle ahead," he said with a sharp jerk of his head. "The Day of Stars is almost here…my years of research can pay off. I'll go on ahead to Mount Lanakila, then. I'll be watching you there. You should take care of yourselves in the meantime, understood?"

"Not a problem," Lillie said with a brilliant smile.

"We always look after each other," Serena said, a soft smile playing gracefully on her features. "That's what family does, right?" Y didn't seem taken aback, but he returned the smile.

"Right. Guess I'll see you there, then, Serena," he said. With those words, he turned around. Hydreigon quickly floated to his side as the duo began to walk away, leaving their little family behind in his campsite. Serena wasn't sure she was ready to think of him as a father yet, but her hesitancy caused her to step forward, just enough to hear his words of pride. "Grace, you raised one heck of a girl…I can't wait to see her perform, and I hope you're watching, too. Maybe I'll even send you a letter…"

That made Serena grin. She didn't need or want her father's validation, but getting it was the final proof: he may have had Michael's face and voice, but he was not, and never would be, Michael himself. Ash approached, putting an arm around her again. "Well, everything okay?"

"Yeah. Just have to get in touch with the others now that we can finally do what we need to," Serena said. She turned around, touching a hand to his chest and leaned in to kiss him softly. The others (except for Bonnie) turned away from it. Then she told him what she felt so deeply that it was ready to burst. "I'm happy again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: A shorter chapter this time around, but considering the amount of detail that was filled in here, I think that's okay. Any longer would have glutted the story, in my opinion. So, as it stands now, I've pretty much filled you in on all of the lore there is to fill except for a few things. Next up, however, is something that's been brewing a long time, and I'm sure that you can guess just what it is…I hope. Other than that, I hope I portrayed everything well, given the past events and current events and what is to come. Please let me know if I did!
> 
> We're almost to some of the big stuff of this finale, so please continue on! Until then, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	13. An Elite

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a moment that's been building, and you know what it means when I say XY&Z gets another use this chapter. So, without further ado, onwards to Chapter 13!

Chapter 13

An Elite

Following Y's departure from the campsite, Ash and the others all quickly made sure to take stock of their own things before choosing to return to the boat. Serena hung back a moment longer, examining the space that her father must have inhabited for years. While Lillie led the others on, Ash stayed there with her, just standing there in silence as she ran her hand over the various papers and other objects. She even kneeled next to the box of Z-Crystals collected there.

"You want one?" she asked jokingly, reaching in and holding one up. Pikachu was off to the side, rummaging around in the tent that Y had left behind, but backing out due to some rotted berries that appeared to be in there. Greninja just shook his head and continued to watch silently.

"Nah, I've got more than enough Z-Crystals," Ash said humorously. Pikachu returned to his shoulder now, almost sharing a slight laugh with him. Serena shrugged and dropped the crystal back inside. "Maybe you should take one, though. I mean, they  _are_  your dad's. I'm sure he wouldn't mind, and it could come in handy."

"Mm, you have a point," Serena admitted. Ash watched her as she shrugged again and this time decided to grab and keep one of the Steelium-Z, placing it right on to her Z-Ring and watching it be absorbed. That settled, like she had a small piece of her father to keep with her, she spun around, her skirt flaring out. Ash watched her with a smile, happy to see her so light and airy again. It was the exact Serena he remembered, if a bit more matured. The battle may have been ahead, he figured, but they still had their joy where they could find it.

Ash even wanted to hold her right then and there and just spend a moment between the two of them, but looking to the slightly lightening sky, he knew they had spent much of the night talking about the new plan for the Day of Stars, which left very little of it for anything else. Plus, he had a promise to keep; one that truly mattered to him more than anything. For that, he needed some time, and sleep. Ash's hand reached up and scratched Pikachu on the head while Serena once more approached, clearly ready to go. He reached out to take her own hand and the two began to walk away from the campsite. Greninja put out the fire with a shuriken and then escorted them back through the forest. For the first time, Ash noticed that there were no Pokémon sounds in the area; just a simple, wafting and calming breeze that flowed across the lake and through the trees.

Maybe it was a sign of the devastation that had been wreaked in this place six years ago, yet Ash happened to find it peaceful, breathing in the cool air. The couple continued to walk on, soon approaching the steps to the ruins and walking up them. The rest of their group appeared to have gone on ahead, not wanting to linger much in that place of darkness, and for good reason. Even now, the portal seemed swirling and sinister before them, despite being silent, as well. The couple both tensed, even though they knew what would have to be done in the near future. Inside, Ash had to wonder just what this "darkness" was and what it could portend, but Pikachu's shuddering just drew him away from those thoughts, allowing him to refocus.

At the edge of the ruins, closest to Oricorio Town, the rest of the group was waiting. Rotom and Bonnie were yawning loudly, almost falling asleep where they stood (or floated, in the former's case). Ash felt a little fatigue, himself, almost going three days without little more than a small nap. He even began to yawn as they set back off. Oricorio Town was still silent with that same sort of sleepy feeling that was starting to take over all of them. Now that the adrenaline of knowing what needed to be done was flushing out of their system, they were all feeling positively exhausted. Ash was surprised they were even able to make it back to the boat in their current state, finding the driver to also be asleep at the wheel. He didn't wake on their approach.

"Let's…get some sleep," Clemont yawned out in suggestion. "We'll contact everyone and head to our next destination in the moooorning…"

"Sounds good…sleepy sleepy time…" Bonnie muttered out, waving her arms around.

"Yes…Rotom must dream up new pranks, now that Rotom is with Bonnie again…" Rotom mumbled out almost incoherently. Ash wasn't aware that the Ghost type could really even dream in the first place, but chose to not question it, really.

"Like you even could," was her drowsy response. It didn't stop them from falling asleep on the deck, with Bonnie clasping to the Pokédex and her other partners, beginning to snore loudly. Clemont just shook his head and covered her with a blanket before going to sleep himself. With their group settled, Ash headed below deck with Serena and Lillie. The latter fell asleep the instant she was in a hammock. Meanwhile, Ash and Serena laid down upon the bed that was there, holding to each other. He felt comfort, and a sense of home, with her in his arms.

"It's nice, being like this again," Serena admitted to him, pressing her back up against his chest calmly. "I feel like it's been forever."

"Yeah," he breathed out, accidentally inhaling the scent of her hair. They both must have smelled to high heaven after everything. Still, he let it relax him. "Thanks for coming to get me, Serena."

"I always will, just like you will for me," she said. Her body twisted around, hands snaking around his neck calmly and with a smile. She nuzzled closer, putting her nose to his. "And thanks for being here. It meant a lot."

He didn't respond, but allowed himself to finally fall asleep with her in his arms in that state of comfort; she seemed to understand. He dreamed of nothing, far too exhausted to care. Yet still, he woke up to the first rays of light that streamed into the boat, and the tromping of footsteps from Bonnie above deck. His body, and that of Pikachu's, pumped themselves full of adrenaline the second he awoke and within a few minutes, they all made their way to the deck, where the driver appeared to be surprised they had returned. Clemont, however, was busy pulling out his communicator and pressing buttons. Bonnie leaned in as they all approached.

"Let's hope there's still someone at the Aether Foundation," Clemont noted, stifling a yawn from himself. Ash reached over to him, clasping him on the shoulder and looking at the screen. In moments, it lit up with two very familiar, and somewhat argumentative, faces.

"Heya, guys! You're just in time!" Hau said cheerily, waving at them. Lillie seemed to wave back as well. "We were just about to make our way to Mount Lanakila. The Hope Leilani starts tomorrow, right? Or something like that…"

"Pretty sure it's in two days," Gladion snapped irritably. Hau shrugged, clearly not caring as he tossed two malasadas in the air, one for him and one for Pipi. Naturally, the two caught them with the expertise of jugglers into their mouths. "This idiot is right about one thing, though: we  _are_  heading out. A lot of people have already made their way there, including Aidan and the rest of them. He plans to come back after the Hope Leilani in order to run things effectively. You guys find anything out?"

Ash didn't answer, preferring to let Clemont deal with the subject at hand. Really, he just didn't want to converse with Gladion. It wasn't a sense of distrust or anger towards the boy anymore; he'd let go of that long ago. No, it was more that he wanted them to settle everything in battle, the only true place they could come to understand one another. That was what mattered, and Ash promised he would hold to the promise that they'd made.

"We found a way to repair the flute and get ourselves into the Ultra Space, but it was recommended that we wait until just before the Day of Stars begins, when the portal at the Lake of the Moone is most unstable, in order to make it happen," Clemont told the blond. He nodded, folding his arms and listening carefully. "We also need yourself, Ash, Serena and Lillie to go to each of the Tapu's shrines in order to make them combine powers on the lake."

"All right…I guess," Gladion said, clearly thinking about the logistics of it all. "Guess we can make it work. You want me to inform Lionel about all of this, then?"

"That would be best," Serena spoke. She didn't mention anything regarding her father, telling all of them on the boat that there was no reason to mention Y heading for Mount Lanakila. Ash could only hope he wouldn't run into the two members of ARC that would likely have a bone to pick with him. Hau once more popped on the screen, clearly annoying Gladion in the absolute worst of ways.

"Awesome! Then we're all set to save the world!" Hau said, jumping up and down with enthusiasm. Gladion continued to look annoyed.

"Will you cut it out? !" he finally snapped, but Hau just grinned at him, before throwing his arm around the surly boy. It was like they were the best of friends, Ash observed…if friends wanted to kill each other. "All right, I'll pass the message along after I take care of this idiot. It'll be a miracle if he even makes it past the first round of the League, the way he's going."

"Hey, me and Pipi are planning to win it all with Incineroar and the others!" Pipi appeared to agreeing, zipping around in midair and doing a few flips on her tail. Gladion's lips were churning, looking ready to strangle the boy. "How about you guys? Headin' to Lanakila? I mean, you  _are_  on Ula'ula."

"Nope," Ash said definitively. Hau's eyes widened, tilting his head in complete surprise. Ash leaned his head back, addressing the driver that was listening in a professional capacity. "We're heading to Melemele, so I can face your grandfather. Promises to keep. But no worries. After I win, we're heading straight for the League!"

"Man, wish I could be there to see it…" Hau said disappointedly. "Lillie, Rotom, you better watch lots and record  _everything_!"

"Rotom is on it, Sir Hau!" Rotom reported with a salute. Lillie just looked a little bemused.

"Why me?" she laughed out. Hau just responded with his own hearty laugh, which soon died away as Gladion pushed him off of the screen, looking even more surly towards him than when the conversation had first started. "You take care, brother. I'll look forward to watching you both battling at the League."

"Naturally," Gladion said, adopting a smile on his face. It was strange for Ash to see, but the smile dropped off as he looked through the screen at Ash. "And I'm holding you to your promise to me."

"Don't worry. We'll definitely battle at the League," Ash promised him. That seemed good for Gladion, and before Hau could interfere yet again, the blond terminated the connection. Ash breathed in and out before looking to the driver, who had already started the boat up, beginning to pull away from the coast in a straight shot for the island they were going to. The raven-haired boy stepped away from Clemont now, looking out to the sea.

It was finally time.

The others all joined him in looking out to the sea, until, after what felt like a remarkably short time (but must have been much of the morning), they could see Melemele on the horizon, including the beach that held Kukui's lab. That seemed to be where the boat was heading, prompting Ash to turn to both Pikachu and Greninja.

"All right, guys, this is it! The last battle before the League and the Day of Stars," he said to his two staunch partners. Pikachu nodded fiercely, clearly prepared for the battle ahead. Greninja remained stoic, folding his arms with a quick "gren". "Let's defeat Hala, together!"

With these words, Ash threw his hand out, letting Pikachu and Greninja throw their hands in as well. Inside their pokeballs, his other Pokémon all seemed riled up, as well. That gave him the confidence to stride onto the beach of Melemele, once the boat had docked there, with his head held high. It was time to fulfill their promise to the Kahuna, once and for all. Sucking in the sea breeze, he turned to his friends, who all looked more than prepared to cheer him on. Having that encouragement, Ash wordlessly looked up towards Iki Town, and then began to once more run in its direction. Every step he took filled him with more and more life.

The others all kept a consistent and even pace with Ash, Pikachu and Greninja. As they reached the hill that officially led to Iki Town, Ash began to grip his pokeballs one by one, calling out a new member of his team with every few steps. It certainly caught quite the amount of attention as they were entering the town. Children and their parents began exiting the wooden structures to look, some recognizing him, others in awe. Ash, however, only offered them smiles and nods until he'd reached the top of the town and looked towards Hala's house, where the Kahuna was unintentionally waiting.

"Ash…" the older man boomed out, standing from his seat at his porch. Ash stopped walking, lifting the brim of his hat a bit.

"I'm here to fulfill our promise," he spoke, clearly and concisely. Behind him, the support of all of his friends and Pokémon were filling him. Hala refused to take his eyes off of him as the older man walked forward, every footstep showing his tremendous strength from its booming sound. Eventually, he stopped in front of Ash and peered at him. The townspeople had all gathered, watching the exchange.

After a brief moment, Hala grinned. "Yes, I can see that. From you and your Pokémon, both."

"Pika, pikachuu!" Pikachu said, pumping both his fists and flexing his muscles. Hala nodded, almost like he had been expecting their arrival, despite it being very unlikely he'd been told beforehand. Like a magnet, the two males turned and looked in the direction of the Mahalo Trail. Like they were called there as fellow champions of the Tapus. Hala looked back, and Ash met his gaze.

"Then we can finally battle, and complete your Grand Trial," he stated with authority. His volume raised powerfully. "Prepare the stage for the Grand Trial!"

"Yes, sir!" some of the people in the town cried out enthusiastically, setting about to work. Hala placed his hands on his hips while Ash smiled at him, ready for the battle that had been building since that day. Since the day that Hala had asked the question which Ash could now answer:  _why do you want to be a Pokémon Master?_

In mere moments, preparations were made to the stage, and anticipation was filling the town like Ash had never felt it before. To him, the town showed its resilience through all its recent disasters from that alone, offering their minds and bodies in preparing for the Grand Trial to Tapu Koko. Ash clapped his hands together, facing towards the Ruins of Conflict with his head bowed towards the guardian deity that had chosen him.  _Tapu Koko, you chose me for my willingness to battle. Now watch me as I battle your previous Champion. I'll prove your decision justified. Then, we'll fight together._

"All set, Kahuna Hala!" cried one of the worker's voice as he stepped away from the stage. It seemed that little bits of debris or material upon it had needed to be cleared away for their battle, but Hala was satisfied with its now current state, striding forward, right for the same side he'd stood on during their first attempt at holding the Grand Trial. Ash smiled, and he looked towards his companions. Bonnie was gripping Rotom tight, the Pokédex looking more than ready to start recording. Lillie and Serena both had their fists close to their chests, as if wishing him luck just with that action. Clemont was the only different one.

"Hala, since Ilima isn't here, would it…would it be all right if I refereed?" the lemon blond asked of the Kahuna. Hala grinned a bit, and then inclined his head with a nod, trusting the inventor with watching over that sacred tradition. That made Ash even more fired up to win, standing up to the stage.

"Toucannon, Lycanroc, Kommo-o, Passimian, cheer us on. This is our final trial before the League, so we're going to all do it together," Ash said with full confidence, never taking his gaze from Hala. So many months ago, the man had seemed an insurmountable mountain. He was the strongest in Alola; the block to overcome. Now, however, Ash was standing there, ready to jump the hurdle. Hala opened his mouth, gripping a pokeball.

"I have been waiting for you, Ash, more than you could ever imagine," Hala said. Around them, the townspeople were gathering, like it was all a proper celebration, as had been indicated by the Kahuna all that time ago. The air was rife with anticipation. "Before we begin…I want to ask you one thing."

Ash looked down to Pikachu, his perennial partner, and shared a single grin. "Go for it."

"Why do you want to be a Pokémon Master?" It was the one he'd been waiting for. Ash raised a fist into the air.

"I don't," he answered simply, causing Hala to raise an eyebrow in response. "I  _am_  a Pokémon Master. Why? Because I know what I want, and who I am. I want to win, because winning means understanding the person and Pokémon in front of me more. Sure, I can get that from losing, and that's okay, but it's not the same. That's why me and my friends are going to defeat you right now. As long as I keep doing that, I'll always be a Pokémon Master."

Hala looked shocked by the response, his mouth parted slightly. He soon closed it, however. Then he let out a booming and shuddering laugh, one that actually shook the entire stage. Ash held his ground. "Now I like hearing that! You pass, Ash Ketchum! You won it all! Now, take it! Take your dream, and show me the true extent of it."

"We plan to! Pikachu, I choose you!" Ash cried out, pointing to the battlefield with a wide grin. He caught sight of Serena and Lillie staring, watching what was about to go down in awe; almost like he was an entirely new person. Ash didn't know about that, but he was certainly ready to give it his all, the same as all of his partners. Hala grinned yet again, throwing his own pokeball into the air.

"Hariyama, it is time!" he cried. The capture device exploded with light as the bulky form of the Arm Thrust Pokémon appeared with a great cry, towering above Pikachu. It almost felt like a continuation of the last battle between them. Except this was  _nothing_  like the last battle. Clemont cleared his throat, raising his hand to the air as the town murmured with anticipation. Ash took encouragement from his friend refereeing.

"This is a Grand Trial battle between the trial-goer, Ash, and the Kahuna, Hala," Clemont said, his own voice filled with excited authority. "It will be a three-on-three battle, with the battle being over when all of one side's Pokémon are defeated. Further, only the trial-goer will be allowed substitutions. You may begin!"

Ash breathed in, just for second. They were ready.

"Pikachu, let's start it off with Quick Attack!" Ash called, thrusting his fist forward. Of course, it was a predictable opener, but Ash wanted to see how Hala would react. Pikachu blasted forward on his legs, shining white as he raced forward, across the stage towards Hariyama. Hala didn't move, just like Ash expected. He was a mighty man, unafraid of anything, with no need to move.

"Bulldoze!" Hala called out, already into the battle. They were two combatants that didn't need to hold anything back now. Hariyama raised a leg up in tandem with Hala, and then slammed it down. The stage instantly rippled, making Ash raise his eyebrows. Right from the beginning, the Kahuna was preventing his earlier strategy. The shockwave shuddered out rippling across the stage and breaking it to its wooden pieces within seconds, like it was a mere toothpick. Pikachu cried out, tumbling across the field from the attack and into the air as the ripple of ground struck him.

"Pikachu, use Electro Ball!" Ash called, not letting himself be deterred at all. Pikachu flipped through the air, the crackling orb of electricity forming at the tip of his tail, pulsing in the air. The crowd actually gasped at the sight of Pikachu recovering, though Hala was unmoving, just like Ash continued to expect from the man.

"…Chu pi!" Pikachu cried powerfully, flinging the orb off towards Hariyama.

"Arm Thrust!" Hala roared, extending his palm outward as his mustache bristled. Hariyama stepped forward, but didn't change its position, its large palms glowing orange. Then its open palm slammed forward, striking the Electro Ball. Ash's eyes narrowed; it may have blocked the attack, but that didn't mean no damage was done. It also meant that they had an opening, making Ash grin.

"Spin into a Quick Attack, Pikachu!" Ash cried. Pikachu grinned from where he was, his little feet kicking against the air as the bright white light surrounded him once more. He sped through the invisible air, aiming right for Hariyama as the large Pokémon retracted its gigantic hands. Pikachu was picking up speed and starting to spin rapidly. "Now, Thunderbolt Counter Shield!"

"Pi-ka! Chuuuuuuuu!" Pikachu screamed. He began to spin faster and faster, looking like a drill. Behind Ash, his Pokémon were all cheering as Pikachu turned into the manifestation of a thunderbolt, himself. Hariyama's hands finally snapped backwards, just as Pikachu slammed into Hariyama's midsection with the force of a bullet. The Thunderbolt exploded upwards, finally driving Hariyama back amidst the debris of the stage that had been created by Bulldoze.

"Reversal," Hala commanded, now slamming his hands together, almost like he was praying. Hariyama did the same thing, a powerful orange shockwave rippling along its body. Suddenly, its large hand swung around, knocking into Pikachu, who cried out with slight pain as he was pushed into the air. Ash watched carefully, but quickly adapted.

"Iron Tail, Pikachu!" he called. Pikachu recovered, his tail glowing bright. He used the momentum of that previous attack to swing forward and slam straight down onto Hariyama. The Arm Thrust Pokémon shuddered, but didn't move. He hadn't noticed it before, during the first fight with the Kahuna, but seeing it now, Hala's typical strategy was easy to see, and it reflected him so well. Ash chose to turn that against him and make him move.

"Arm Thrust!" came the next command. Hariyama acted instantly.

"Yama!" it cried, his open palm glowing orange again as it punched forward. There was no way for Pikachu to avoid that strike while he dropped, and it slammed home, knocking him straight into the ground amidst the wooden splinters from the obliterated stage.

"Pi…ka…" Pikachu groaned out, sitting up straight and shaking his head, likely a little dazed from the blow. However, Ash wasn't worried. He knew Pikachu was more than ready to take on the opponent before them. That was something they all understood together.

"Electro Ball!" Ash cried out. Pikachu began charging the orb while Hariyama stayed in place, likely ready to block it, just as before. Ash's eyes flitted around the battlefield before looking right into Hala's eyes, narrow as they were. His foot was going to twitch. "Fire, and then use Iron Tail on the ground!"

"Use Bulldoze!" Hala roared once more. Sure enough, Hariyama raised its large leg and brought it slamming down on the ground. Several things happened in quick succession. The Electro Ball fired, slamming right into Hariyama's midsection as its leg came crashing down, unable to block the attack. Shockwaves of the ground came rippling outward, aiming right for Pikachu. He wasn't taking it lying down, though, and he slammed the fast-moving ground with his glowing tail, flinging himself right into the air above the stage.

"Now, Thunderbolt!" Ash called out, sweeping his arm across the area with a grin. Pikachu was grinning right with him, the two of them in sync as his body sparked and jolted with the yellow electricity. The lightning fired in an arc, slamming into Hariyama with little remorse. Underneath Pikachu, the broken up Bulldoze met its match from the Iron Tail and came to an end.

"So cool!" Bonnie cried out. "Pikachu got into the air and stopped the Bulldoze at the same time! Let's pay more attention, Dedenne and Squishy!"

_Honestly, humans can be so overenthusiastic…_ Ash heard Bluey say, yet could tell the little Zygarde form was watching intently. Rotom remained silent as it recorded. Hariyama now finished its convulsions as Pikachu hit upon the ground once more. Ash shifted his foot, knowing that Hala would retaliate in seconds.

"Arm Thrust on the wood!"

"Knock it back with Iron Tail!" Hariyama's glowing orange hands slammed forward as his foot slammed to the ground. There was no shockwave this time, but the wooden planks of the broken stage fired into the air, where Hariyama slammed into them at a rapid pace, hitting them all right towards Pikachu. Ash, however, knew his best friend wasn't one to give up. His tail was glowing once again and he flipped around, slamming into one plank and then another. It was like a match of volleying wood, with everyone watching in rapt fascination. Soon, Ash saw his opening. "Quick Attack, let's go!"

"Pika!" Pikachu yelled out. He ducked low and sped off beneath the falling and flying wood, dodging every single one that was coming his way, courtesy of Hariyama. Ash threw his fist into the air, calling for a quick Iron Tail just as Pikachu reached the target. Dashing underneath Hariyama's legs, Pikachu sliced upwards. "Chu pika!"

Hariyama stumbled a bit.

"Oh my…Pikachu has certainly grown, which is almost surprising given all your time together," Hala bristled, grabbing on to the ties holding his clothing and pulling them tighter. Ash's friends were silent, watching the battle with anticipation. "Well, then. Belly Drum!"

"Hari! Yama! Yama!" Hariyama began chanting. His large palms were beating against his big belly, small vibrations coming from them. They'd have to end this quick.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash cried out. Pikachu, from behind Hariyama, had most definitely heard him. Large shocks of lightning were flying out from his position and then arching through the air before slamming right into Hariyama. The large Arm Thrust Pokémon was turning around, however.

"Bulldoze." The command was simple and effective, yet still, Hariyama had yet to move from its spot. It made Ash know just what to do before the powerful attack could hit.

"Pikachu, stop with the Thunderbolt, and use Quick Attack to get to the edge of the stage!" Ash called out. Pikachu seemed to nod, canceling his attack in a mere second and then jumping to the side, using the extra burst in speed to get away. Hariyama slammed down. This time, the shockwave was even more powerful than the last, blasting any remnants of the stage near Hala into the air. Pikachu rolled to the side to avoid both the attack and the debris. Then, he changed direction and leapt through the air for Hariyama.

"Reversal!"

"Oh no!" Lillie seemed to gasp, just as the rest of the crowd did so, too. Ash could see why, knowing Pikachu would take the hit. He wasn't too worried, though, looking over at Passimian. His next, precise strike would lead to the end. "Hariyama is quite damaged, and with Belly Drum…"

"Pikachu will be fine," Serena said. She did look a little worried, however. The orange shockwave pulsed out from the Arm Thrust Pokémon, and Hariyama swung into Pikachu, slamming him towards the ground. The floor sunk in a bit from the force of Pikachu impacting with it, leaving him heaving in the center of the small crater, but getting back up regardless of the heavy hit.

"Now, Iron Tail!" Ash yelled. Hala also called for an Arm Thrust. Pikachu swung upwards with his glowing tail just as Hariyama slammed forward. The white and orange attacks met, sparking with one another as they strained. For all of Hariyama's strength and Pikachu's exhaustion, they were holding. Not for long. "Use Electro Ball!"

"Pika pika pika pika pika chu pi!" The Electro Ball, trapped against Hariyama's palm, grew bigger and bigger, seemingly starting to scorch Hariyama's hand. Given its strategy of not moving away, Ash could already see the next attack coming with a grin.

"Your other hand!" Hala roared out. The other palm came soaring out, but Ash had anticipated it.

"Now, Pikachu, flip over with Quick Attack!" Ash yelled. Pikachu did just as asked. Using the Electro Ball for momentum, his body blazed with white and he fired the orb, driving himself back just enough to avoid the other palm and shoot over it with a Quick Attack, right into Hariyama's face. The Fighting type stumbled backwards. "End it with Thunderbolt!"

"Piiiiikaaaachuuuuuuuuu!" Pikachu screamed out from midair. His electric sacs pulsed with the powerful electricity and soon fired out such a powerful volt that it consumed Hariyama's body, exploding the air and the stage around him, to everyone's gasps. Then, Pikachu landed, and the stage shuddered soon after, the larger Pokémon having fallen to the ground.

"Hariyama is unable to battle! Pikachu is the winner!" Clemont called, already looking overjoyed, but remaining as impartial as possible.

"Yeah! Nice job, Pikachu!" Ash called out. Pikachu smiled, slumping just a little. Ash chuckled a bit under his breath. "Why don't you come back and take a good rest?"

"Pi…" Pikachu said, running back over to his side. Ash bent down and pet his partner on the head. Over to the side, the crowd clearly wasn't sure what to think, even with Bonnie jumping up and down while Serena and Lillie clapped their hands together. Rotom still remained silent, recording the entire match carefully. In the meantime, Hala recalled Hariyama, stroking his mustache.

"Yes…you've grown, as well." Ash straightened, smiling at the Kahuna. "I can feel it, the conviction in your attacks, the way you've come to read me. Hm…guess I'll have to adapt."

"That's just the way we like it! That's why, Decidueye, I choose you!"

"Machamp, time for battle!" Decidueye leapt on to the field, his cloak billowing out behind him as he did so. From Hala's pokeball emerged the four-armed Pokémon that Ash had faced once before. Despite how well-seasoned Hala and all his Pokémon were, Ash could sense there was something different. With a smirk adorning his face, he knew he'd have to be careful. "I can't say I'm surprised to be facing Decidueye. Not only are you using the same team you attempted to face me with before we were interrupted, but that I should face the Rowlet I once did not give away because of how problematic he was…it seems all too poetic."

"Wasn't thinking that far," Ash admitted with a chuckle, "but if that's how you want to think, then Decidueye and I will show you just how much we've grown together."

"Kooroo!" Decidueye agreed wholeheartedly, spreading his wings. Murmurs cascaded around, allowing Ash to catch small snippets of them; about how much Rowlet seemed to have grown, wondering how he had come to be under a trainer that could understand him. Ash was prepared to show them just how in this battle alone.

"Let's go, Decidueye! Leaf Blade!" Decidueye's wings shot out, the tips of them grabbing hold of shining green blades of energy. He began rushing across the ground, right for Machamp. This time, their battle would go differently. Like always, Machamp didn't move, his body beginning to glow red with the power of a Focus Energy. "Throw them, now!"

"Sai!" Decidueye cried out, throwing both of the blades forward with deadly precision and accuracy. They aimed on a straight collision course for Machamp, making Ash wonder just how Hala would retaliate to it.

"Ice Punch!" Hala roared, shifting his foot slightly. It was like he was conceding slight ground.

"Move in with Acrobatics!" Ash cried out. As two of Machamp's fists were imbued with an icy glow, Decidueye rushed forward, glowing blue, himself. The Superpower Pokémon rapidly punched at the blades, hitting them and freezing them to pieces instantly. Decidueye was now in range, leaping into the air and kicking down with his powerful talons. Machamp hadn't seen it coming, forcing him to get slammed and pushed slightly back, head bowed low. That didn't stop the other arms from snapping out with surprising reach and slamming Decidueye in the stomach with their own frozen intensity.

"Stand your ground, Machamp!" Hala called out, his body brimming with authority. Decidueye was thrown backwards, his chest glowing blue, but Ash watched him a moment. In seconds, he knew that his partner was okay. "Move forward with Ice Punch!"

"Use Frenzy Plant!" Ash cried, crouching low and touching his hand to the stage's remnants. Decidueye did the same, but from where his wing swept the ground, giant plants erupted, whipping around the area. Machamp remained immobile, as if unsure of what to do while the roots kept him contained. "Now, get him with Leaf Blade!"

"Desai!" Decidueye hissed out with his hoot. He zoomed forward, blending in with the plants like the Ghost type that he was. In seconds, he had reappeared right at their opponent and was slashing forward with his blades in a cross fashion that knocked Machamp backwards.

"Dual Chop!" Ash's fist clenched. He knew that things had likely changed, but he had simply been unsure of how. This, however, was proof of it; Hala had been anticipating battling Decidueye at some point. Machamp's arms glowed a bright blue-purple and then slashed outward. Decidueye was right within range, slammed in the chest by one arm, before another battered upon his head. He cried out, clearly having taken heavy damage. Ash's eyes flitted around, hearing the gasps from the crowd.

"Pull back, launch your Leaf Blades into the Frenzy Plant," Ash ordered. Some of the roots that had torn up from the ground remained, though not many. Those that did, at the very least, surrounded Machamp. Decidueye, leaping back, unsheathed his blades and tossed them, planting them at random spots amidst the roots. "Now, Spirit Shackle!"

"Focus Energy!" Ash reached up to play with the brim of his hat. Hala was biding his time, just as always, amassing his strength for the ultimate battle ahead. That was fine by Ash; he was planning to have Decidueye strike with the utmost precision to end the battle, anyway. The Arrow Quill Pokémon drew back, pulling tight at the drawstring of his ghostly bow before firing. Machamp's body glowed red as the Ghost type attack struck, causing a small explosion at the base of Machamp's feet, locking it in place with snaking, shadowy tendrils.

"Now, use Acrobatics by leaping from sword to sword," Ash called out. Decidueye nodded, looking over at Hala challengingly for a second. He then vanished, reappearing atop one of the swords and kicking out. The force of the hit landed, pummeling Machamp from afar. As soon as the force ended, Decidueye was atop another sword and kicking once again. It continued on, but Hala remained patient, even as Machamp took a beating.

"Now, Ice Punch, rapidly!" Hala roared, clasping his fingers to his palms and punching forward. Machamp did the same. His foot moved forward, the smoky tendrils disappearing before he punched in a complete blur of limbs. The icy chill would no doubt be overwhelming the area, Ash figured, even as Decidueye dodged. The swords he was using for balance broke from the frost, as the rest of the Frenzy Plant shattered. Decidueye was hit soon after by one of the fists, flying back.

"No room to delay! Frenzy Plant!" Ash called. This time he didn't sweep the ground, but Decidueye angled that way, flapping out across the ground. The large roots snaked out with great force, ripping at the ground and walloping into Machamp.

"Catch it," Hala ordered calmly. Two of Machamp's arms shot out, grabbing ahold of one of the roots and stopping its attack entirely. Ash hadn't seen that coming, but taking an attack in a holding position made it make a lot of sense. "Slice them apart with Dual Chop!"

"Champ!" Machamp grumbled out. His other two arms glowed that same purplish glow from before and then struck forward, slicing right through the Frenzy Plant. Decidueye looked back to Ash and he nodded. The archer rushed forward, disappearing into the swirl of plants still flailing around. Machamp was slicing through them, cutting them into ribbons. His body was on the move, cutting them and destroying them left and right. They began collapsing on to the ground, even as Decidueye landed atop one of them.

"Now fire a Spirit Shackle!"

"Oh, you're tricky…" Hala grumbled out, a smirk stretching his features. Decidueye was too fast for a command, though, having already marked his target with the deadly precision they had all been training. He nocked his ghostly arrow and fired it, nailing Machamp in the chest and locking his entire body into place with a ghostly explosion. The four arms were still moving, though. "Prepare for an Ice Punch and Dual Chop both!"

"This isn't like last time, Hala! Decidueye has come a really long way now, you know!" Ash said, throwing his fist into the air. Decidueye caught the command, leaping high from the roots and beginning to spin rapidly. "We're great teammates who understand each other! He's not the same Rowlet you remember, just like I'm not the same Ash you remember! So, use Leaf Blade and pin two of the arms!"

"Kooorai!" Decidueye hooted out fiercely. He was spinning fast, but found the time to eject two of his blades of foliage, shooting them right out for the freezing fists. They struck just below that frozen aura, causing the fists to fly back and become stuck to one of the remaining giant plants. Without even needing Ash's next command, knowing plainly what it was as his teammates cheered him on, Decidueye acted. He continued to spin, drawing out two more blades, but holding them closely as he spun right for his opponent, quickly entering striking range. Machamp swung inward with his Dual Chop. The attack slammed into Decidueye, but didn't deter him as he blitzed past the opponent and straightened up, making a great slice. "Sai!"

"Chaaaaamp!" Machamp cried as a great green cross shape bloomed and exploded across his chest. Decidueye twirled his blades, and acted as if he was putting them away. Then Machamp fell, slamming into the ground. Hala raised an eyebrow while Ash looked to Clemont. The boy looked to almost be shaking, like he couldn't believe just what he was about to call.

"M-Machamp is unable to battle! Decidueye is the winner!" That single judgment sent the whole crowd into a complete tizzy. In particular, Serena and Lillie clapped their hands together in joy once more, laughing out. The other Pokémon all cheered, too.

"Unbelievable…"

"He's taking Hala down without losing anything yet," said another member of the crowd. Ash wasn't going to let that get to him, knowing full well that the true challenge was yet to come, and he was going to have to use everything he had to make it all happen in his favor. Ash took his gaze over to Hala, the man not smiling or frowning. He was simply living for the battle, showing the strength to protect Alola with all he had as he returned Machamp.

"Decidueye, we have to be on our guard still, okay?" Ash called. Decidueye nodded, his knees bowed out just a little. The battle with Machamp, while quick, had clearly not been entirely one-sided. He had taken damage, and the real threat was waiting for him. It was a silent threat, too, as Hala felt no need to engage Ash in conversation anymore. He had seen Decidueye's strength, and now he wanted to complete the prelude to the true battle of the Grand Trial.

"Crabominable, it is time!" he called, sending his pokeball in a wide arc. It exploded with light, and the familiar form of Crabominable appeared, landing in the exact spot its teammates had battled in. Ash stared across at Hala and then looked to Decidueye. The first move was clearly his.

"Frenzy Plant!" Ash called, hoping to create cover and inflict as much damage as possible before things could get out of hand against the likely strongest Pokémon in all of Alola. Decidueye ran forward, sweeping his wing as he did, sending the bevy of plants raining out towards Crabominable. Some hit, but the Woolly Crab Pokémon stood its ground.

"Ice Hammer!" Hala called, punching a fist forward. Crabominable's large claw swung back and soon whipped around, freezing the plants and beating them back all too quickly, as though they were inconsequential. Ash looked to his Z-Ring, already thinking of a way to implement it in. "Rock Slide!"

"Don't worry and use Acrobatics!" Ash called. There was some  _slight_  cause for worry, however, as the shining rocks appeared over Decidueye in seconds and began raining downward. He was zipping through the falling rocks, body glowing light blue. Some of them clipped him, slowing his speed, but he kept going. Decidueye leapt into the air and kicked forward, sending the almost glowing force ahead of him.

"Grab it, and use Ice Hammer!" Hala called, clearly looking to put an end to Decidueye. His claw shot out quicker than even Decidueye could get away from his previous attack, having anticipated the movement. It grabbed on to his talon and held him there as the last of the rocks hit Decidueye before the great icy hammer came sailing out.

"Decidueye, Supersonic Skystrike! Let's do it!" Ash called before it could hit. He quickly crossed his arms, beginning the movements for the Flying type Z-Move. Before the Ice Hammer hit, he succeeded in completing all the movements, and Decidueye brimmed with energy, soon blasting off from the ground and into the air. The two became like a blur that the entire crowd followed upwards, watching as Decidueye soared through the air and then turned around, aiming straight back down for the exact same spot with tremendous force. Just as they were about to hit the ground, the hammer fell. Then the force of the impact came and exploded outward, the two foes landing on the remnants of the stage. "Decidueye!"

"Koo…" came the exhausted call as the dust cleared. Crabominable looked a little roughed up from the Z-Move, but otherwise okay as it kept in its original spot. Decidueye wasn't the same.

"Decidueye is unable to battle! Crabominable is the winner!" Clemont called, throwing a hand out towards Hala. Ash ran forward, bending low and draping his stalwart Pokémon over him before dragging him over to the rest of his friends.

"You were amazing, Decidueye. You've really grown," he said to his Pokémon. The archer nodded, seemingly even happier when Toucannon dropped a berry into his lap. "Leave it to me and Greninja. I know what to look for now."

"Koo…" Decidueye agreed. Ash looked up and straight at Greninja. His Water type nodded and then flipped forward, landing on the battlefield as Ash faced Hala once more. Hala's fist was in his palm, cracking his knuckles. All around them, the town was reaching a feverish pitch, almost cheering a little, wondering just what was about to go down in the final round. Pikachu was still at his side, yelling a few "Pika"s to cheer his teammate on, but Ash was determined to finish it right now: he had the full measure of Hala.

"This is the battle we should have had at the beginning, Greninja," Ash spoke. The amphibian turned towards him and nodded before facing back towards Crabominable, who was clicking its pincers. "Let's make this the best fight we've had together so far! Go all out right from the start! Full power!"

"Greeeeeninja!" The water burst out, sending the citizens of Iki Town into oohs and ahs once again. However, it didn't take long before the changes happened to Greninja and Ash was staring through the eyes of his partner, with a giant shuriken there. It was time.

"Let's kick it off with Aerial Ace!" Ash yelled, kicking forward. Greninja sped up as he shot forward, zipping forth in an almost zigzagging fashion to approach Crabominable at top speed.

"Prepare for it with Brick Break!" Hala commanded powerfully. Crabominable's claw glowed bright white and came swinging out. Greninja's own fists glowed the same and met the attack in midair, a shockwave resulting. But Ash was already taking advantage of Crabominable's fixed position.

"Flip over it!" he called. One of Greninja's arms snapped out, grabbing ahold of Crabominable's pincer and flipping over on command. As he did so, his leg snapped out, nailing the crab on the back.

"Knock it around with Ice Hammer!" Hala cried. Crabominable raised its giant claw, brimming with a frigid fury, and began to whir it around. Greninja, unable to clear the distance, was slammed with the attack in his stomach. Ash recoiled, having almost forgotten the pain factor. Greninja went flying back from it.

"Balance yourself with your shuriken!" Ash ordered, standing back up straight, with a grin that said he wasn't affected. Serena seemed to sigh with relief on the sidelines. Greninja and Ash reached for their backs, but only the frog grabbed his giant shuriken, digging it into the ground and balancing himself. He flipped safely on to the ground. "Now, toss it and then use Double Team!"

"Ninja!" Greninja croaked out, throwing the attack swiftly. Crabominable was now turning in place with a scuttling noise as the shuriken impacted with it.

"Rock Slide!" Hala roared out, an upturn of his lips underneath his mustache.

"Crabababa!" Crabominable cried out, raising its pincers high. Around the battlefield, numerous copies of Greninja appeared, one right after the other. At the same time, glowing rocks appeared all around the battlefield and began to rain down. Some impacted with the copies, while others missed entirely. However, Greninja was on the run.

"Use Cut to break through and strike!" Ash called, keeping the closest of eyes on Crabominable. The real Greninja sped forward, siphoning watery kunai from the shuriken on his back. A rock came close and he sliced, breaking it apart with that single strike as he aimed right for Crabominable. In seconds, he reached the target, and both he and Ash slashed downward.

"Bomaaa!"

"He did it! He hurt it!" Serena shouted, clearly unable to help herself. It was true; he'd been so in the battle that he didn't notice, but he  _had_  been able to hurt Crabominable with the attack. But it also meant the battle was nowhere near over.

"Close Combat!" Hala was roaring out. Crabominable recovered and sent a pincer roaring out powerfully.

"Counter with Aerial Ace!" was Ash's follow-up. Greninja acted instantly, limbs glowing white as they struck inward. The fists met and soon collided in a flurry of kicks and punches, moving at a rapid speed in the middle of the field. Their fists slammed into each other like before, a harsh shockwave rippling the pieces of wood on the ground.

"Give it an uppercut with Ice Hammer," Hala's next order came. With Crabominable's other pincer, it glowed an icy gleam and swiped straight upward. The attack hit Greninja in the jaw and sent him flying off. Ash grimaced, but worked his jaw quickly.

"Water Shuriken!" Greninja recovered, grabbing his shuriken and tossing it with force, straight downward. It struck Crabominable on the head, causing it to skitter in place. Ash grinned again. "Let's use Double Team and Cut!"

"Gren!" Greninja confirmed. In seconds, the air and ground were multiplying with the clones of Greninja, obscuring Hala from the view of his Pokémon. They all began descending, kunai in all of their hands as they rushed at Crabominable.

"Use Brick Break to knock them all away," Hala ordered, folding his arms with a smirk. It seemed to Ash like he was fully enjoying the battle, and Ash had a feeling that he knew what was coming next. All of the Greninja reached Crabominable and the shining pincer slammed up, down, and around to knock them all away before their attacks could connect. Then the real Greninja sped inwards. "There it is! Grab it!"

"Crabah!" Crabominable cried. Its other pincer snapped out, grabbing ahold of Greninja. The Ninja Pokémon turned its head to look at Ash in its struggle, and he grinned. Just as they'd wanted.

"Now, use Aerial Ace!"

"Ice Hammer!" Hala roared. Both attacks struck at the same moment. Greninja kicked out with shining limbs, straight into the Woolly Crab's face, while the free pincer slammed atop Greninja and forced him into the ground. Ash grimaced from the strike, but could see Crabominable being forced backwards. It was starting to heave, though its unmoving form wasn't showing it to the audience that was raptly watching. "Keep it up!"

"Block it with Water Shuriken!" Ash called. Greninja reached around for his back as the second Ice Hammer, now from the other pincer, came screaming out. Greninja swung like he was brandishing a sword and blocked the attack. Part of it froze, but Greninja kept going, the two clashing at a surprisingly rapid pace. "Now, thrust forward!"

"Grenin!" Greninja cried, dodging the next hammer and stabbing forward. It impaled Crabominable between the eyes, causing it to roar in pain. Hala's eyes snapped open as Crabominable flailed around, feet tossing up the chunks of wood.

"Crabominable!" he yelled in concern, but seemed to breathe in relief as Crabominable's tantrum calmed. "Very well. Let us end this, old friend!"

"Finally…" Ash grinned out, slamming his hands together while Greninja did the same. He knew what was coming, and he was more than ready. Hala crossed his arms and uncrossed them before he began punching forward. Crabominable was beginning to do the same, the air filling with Z-Power. "Greninja, use Double Team, right now! We're putting an end to this!"

"All-Out Pummeling!" Hala roared out. Ash turned his head to see Serena and Lillie clasping for one another while Bonnie and Rotom had drawn close to the stage in excitement. Crabominable's punching didn't stop, slamming forward with amber colored fists that there was no end to. They mercilessly battered the clones scattered about the area. That amber glow soon surrounded Crabominable and it began to charge forward, moving from its spot at last.

"Sorry, Hala! But this is our battle! We got you to move!" Ash called out to the Kahuna. The ghostly hands were coming to an end now, and Hala almost looked surprised by Ash's statement. Not that he minded, even as Crabominable was beginning to charge. "I told you! We understand you! And that means you stand in one place and hold your ground in everything you do, so if we could get Crabominable to move on its own, we won! Greninja, flip over it and use an Aerial Cut upward!"

"Crabominable!" Hala yelled out in clear concern. However, the charge of the Z-Move could not be stopped, even as it barreled for the last Greninja on the field, the real one. Ash grinned down at Pikachu and then kicked forward. Greninja did the same, springing into a spinning flip. Crabominable charged through the debris without stopping until it had reached the end of the field. The attack had been quick, but not as quick as Greninja. He came spinning in with glowing limbs and a watery kunai, right on the other side of Crabominable's body. Then he slashed upwards, straight on the underbelly of the crab. It was tossed into the air, almost floundering and helpless.

"Now, Hala! Me and my team are putting it all on the line for you! Our strength, purpose, conviction and dream! Use Double Team!" Ash called out, smiling so brightly that the whole crowd leaned forward. Once more, and for the final time, copies appeared around the battlefield like wildfire. "Time to end this! Use Water Shuriken with everything we have and slice through it!"

"Greeeeen…." Greninja cried out. The copies disappeared, fueling the liquid shuriken above Greninja's head. It grew thrice in size.

"So remarkable!" Lillie and Serena cried out in tandem.

"Go! Go! Go get 'em, Ash-Greninja!" Bonnie cried, Dedenne and Squishy cheering with her. Then Greninja leapt forward, brandishing his shuriken like a watery blade and slicing right through Crabominable. The sound of it was audible, piercing the air as water erupted from Crabominable in a powerful stream. Smoke appeared from the result of it, like an explosion, and Ash had to wait; wait and see whether it had been enough. He breathed in, feeling Greninja as his trusted Pokémon landed, feeling the exhaustion that he hadn't displayed given his nature, but had surely felt growing.

Then there was the loud slam, and the sound of wooden planks tumbling away. Dust billowed and the crowd grew silent while everyone watched on in anticipation. It was a hushed moment, but soon the smoke cleared, revealing Crabominable below, utterly spent. Clemont appeared to be shaking so much, it took him a few seconds to make the call.

"Crabominable is unable to battle! The winner is Greninja, and the battle goes to the trial-goer, Ash!" Those words seemed to have taken everything out of him, because Clemont sunk to his knees in what looked like exhilaration. The form faded from Greninja and Ash let out a heave of exhaustion. It had been much closer than they'd let on.

"Amazing!" cried someone from the crowd, sending them into a frenzy of cheers at the spectacle they had just witnessed. "Hala's Crabominable was defeated!"

"I haven't seen that in ages!"

"Kooroo!" Decidueye suddenly cried out. Ash turned, and suddenly saw all of his Pokémon converging upon him and piling there, falling down to the ground. They shared laughter over their victory together, even Greninja breaking his stoic demeanor to join in. From a gap in his friends, Ash noticed the frothing Crabominable being called back, while the town erupted with glowing praise.

"We've got to hold a party for this! Break out the food!"

"Rotom will make play-by-plays!" Rotom said excitedly. Bonnie seemed to like that idea, for she grabbed the Pokédex and instantly began touching buttons on its screen. Ash noticed Clemont having gone up to Serena and Lillie, both looking elated and cheerful at Ash's victory over Hala. Of course, he knew that without all those surrounding him, it wouldn't have been possible: they were what had helped him find the meaning to his dream.

"A splendid battle," Hala's voice rumbled suddenly from above him. Ash looked up and noticed the Kahuna offering a hand to him. With his Pokémon moving away from him, he took it and was pulled up. There were no words exchanged; the battle had seemed to do all the talking for them. "Come with me. Just you and your team."

"All right," Ash said simply. Hala stepped away, walking towards the forest that led to the Mahalo Trail. The villagers all stopped in their party celebrations for a moment to watch him go, but returned to them all too quickly, with Serena, Lillie, Clemont and Bonnie swept up in the thick of it moments later. Pikachu, clearly still tired, returned to Ash's shoulder as they walked on after Hala in silence. Soon, the forest faded to the familiar ravine and waterfall, then the bridge. Yet they remained silent, traveling over the bridge, not even snapping the repaired structure once. "This is Tapu Koko's shrine, isn't it?"

"Yes," was Hala's answer. "I have no doubt he was watching our battle from afar, and I have the feeling he was most pleased with you."

"He was?" Ash asked. Hala didn't respond. Their steps soon moved off the bridge and back on to dirt. Small statues surrounded the area leading on the path to the Ruins of Conflict.

"Yes…we owe much to our guardian deities, as you well know. Peace, security, strife, the ability to grow, to love, to despair, to hope…so much. That anyone would seek to destroy that, saddens me," Hala said, his feet carrying authority to them as they walked forward. Ash could see the ruined structures now sitting around them, looking to have been destroyed long ago. "The trials are a manifestation of that love. That we prove ourselves to them."

"But Guzma couldn't," Ash answered. "Nor would Lusamine, I guess…"

"No, I suppose not," was Hala's response. Finally, they stopped walking, and Ash realized they were before a small altar, no doubt to pray to Tapu Koko. Hala kneeled down, clasping his hands together. Ash understood and did the same, silence between them a moment. "But Ash, I have seen you grow into a fine young man. From one who was unaware, into one who carries all the conviction in the world. I can truly believe you are what you say you are. That has always been the point of the trials.

"As one who was chosen by Tapu Koko, as well, I understand that hallowed responsibility to see his will through, and I pray that you can succeed where I could not." Ash easily understood the double meaning behind those words and he nodded. If he wanted to truly call himself a Pokémon Master, then he'd have to make sure to save the one person who'd lost himself along the way. "Thank you for a very good battle. Take it."

Ash turned his head, barely catching on to the small orb and crystal that Hala had tossed to him. The crystal instantly sunk into the surface of his Z-Ring. As he did, a shrill cry sounded out, like Tapu Koko had certainly watched them. The two men stood, facing each other one more time as they held their hands out. Shaking on it, it confirmed everything in Ash's mind. Words were meaningless, especially as he turned away to leave.

"Ash, good luck in the League. I'll support you and Hau both when I arrive there, so make sure you make a battle that neither of you will forget." Ash stopped and then grinned back at the older man, his Pokémon all splayed out with him.

"We'll battle the very best we can, not only at the Hope Leilani and League, but for our world, itself," he answered. Then he returned to town ahead of Hala, and after a night of celebration for Ash's official entry into the main League competition, the next morning dawned with a growing anticipation.

At last, the time had come to head for Mount Lanakila. The Hope Leilani was about to begin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So, the battle with Hala has come to its end. I hope it was a fitting battle that makes up for postponing it for over 50 chapters at this point, ha ha. I really wanted it to be this culmination for Ash's character in a way, overcoming the challenge that began it. There isn't that much else to say about it. Well, other than saying I didn't want to finish with Greninja's Z-Move…that would have cheapened it, I felt. Next time, the Hope Leilani finally begins, and I hope it all goes well, because there's no stopping from here to the end.
> 
> Now we embark on that second to last phase, and I hope it's enjoyable! Until then, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	14. A Celebration

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here we go. Final run up through to the end of the trilogy. I hope you'll all enjoy every chapter from here on out. Chapter 14 time!

Chapter 14

A Celebration

"It's finally here! In less than twenty-four hours, the regional event of the millennium is set to begin!" the familiar voice echoed all around the air. Despite the loudness of the voice, no one in the area actually reacted to it, bustling around with the air of excitement that exuded from all of them. "We're here to bring you all of the great coverage surrounding these two events that won't be forgotten for a long time! Be sure to see some blistering hot battles, engaging performances, and an excitement that will last far longer than the events taking place!"

"It looks so awesome!" Bonnie cheered out once the announcement had finished. Serena had to agree as to how impressive it all was. She breathed in, Ash at her side, as they stared at the area around them.

"Mount Lanakila, finally. You ready for this, Pikachu?" Ash asked of his partner, his eyes scanning the entire location carefully. Pikachu perked up on his shoulder, indicating how ready they were for battle. Greninja was still to the side, silent in nature. Serena took the moment to look at the area all around them, herself. Even from just a cursory glance, it was evident the extent of care and detail to which the League and Alolan officials had poured in to constructing this entire place. Despite the cold snow falling, people were walking in between the little buildings that represented the trainer's village on Mount Lanakila. It could have easily been mistaken for a long-term village, if one looked at it.

There was even an ancient building that looked something like a castle of some sort. Not only that, but as Serena's eyes finally settled upon the stadium, she could see that the exterior was still remarkably reminiscent of older times, even if all the shots of the inside (taken from screens outside) spoke to its modernity. Placing a hand over to her wrist and her blue ribbon, she drew encouragement, ready to make the final stride for the Hope Leilani. Ash was also speaking calmly, hands in his pockets, unaffected by the cold all around them.

"The others should be here by now, huh?" he spoke, walking just a little forward and bending slightly. His eyes were clearly searching the diverse crowd to look for their group of friends. Serena did as well, but was ultimately unable to find sight of any of them, though she could swear she caught sight of what looked like Nanu and Looker amidst the crowd, rapidly conversing about something. Although, considering they vanished in seconds, she was sure it was just a trick on her eyes.

"Guys, why don't you get to registering?" Lillie asked, walking forward. She was digging in her bag, pulling out a hat and jacket, for the cold, that she placed upon her head and body. "We don't want you all to miss out on the Alolan event of the millennium!"

"Right, we should do that," Ash said, finally straightening up. Serena could tell from his tone just how much he wanted to train with his Pokémon in preparation for the upcoming League, but he didn't show his usual signs of antsy behavior. "Come on, Serena!"

"Wha-Hold on, Ash!" Serena cried as Ash grabbed ahold of her wrist and began pulling her forward. She tried to catch up, but eventually just ran into the flow for the large building that was attached to the stadium. Some people, mostly young children, were pointing at them as they ran, as if recognizing Serena to their parents, but the honey blonde didn't have the chance to stop and wave. She did wonder if her other rivals were already here (she had no doubt Jessie was).

"All right! This is so exciting! Isn't it, Clemont?" Bonnie was cheering as the other three trailed behind them, Greninja acting like a bodyguard for them.

"Of course! I'm looking forward to watching the both of them," Clemont admitted, and Serena could hear how at peace he sounded. That made her smile as the doors to the reception area of the stadium opened up. There were even more people inside, no doubt to escape the cold. "Rotom, stop bothering people outside!"

"Okay! Rotom will bother people inside!" Rotom cheered out. Bonnie just grabbed ahold of Squishy, apologizing to him and then tossing him straight at the Pokédex violently. Serena didn't see the end result, being dragged up to the registration desk as it happened, but the loud smacking sound essentially told her what had occurred.

"Welcome to registration," a Nurse Joy that was sitting at the desk greeted them cheerily. Serena regained her bearings before the woman continued on, noting the different police guards and a couple Officer Jennys around the area. It really showed the amount of security they were heaping upon the event. She was even sure she saw some Aether Foundation employees; Gladion likely had a hand in making sure things were going off without a hitch. "For which event are you registering?"

"The Alola League!" Ash said, swiping out his amulet and placing it upon the desk. Rotom finally seemed to recover from the issue of Squishy on its face and floated forward. Serena cleared the fog in her head and walked forward, as well, getting a good look at the completed amulet, all of its wedges filled in and different crystalline orbs placed. It inspired her and she grabbed for her three Leis.

"And I'm here to register for the Hope Leilani," Serena stated, holding her box out, as well as her old Pokédex. Rotom, meanwhile, floated forward in order to help register with Ash. Nurse Joy took all of them and quickly began entering their information in the system. Serena took the brief moment that she was doing so and glanced around the area, noticing some phone booths that were relatively empty. On one of them appeared to be what looked like a punk rocker of sorts, but Serena didn't have the time to examine him well before a dinging sound was heard.

"All registered, then!" Nurse Joy said, handing back their items to them, as well as what looked like room keys, the number seven emblazoned upon it. "Ash Ketchum is registered for the Lanakila Conference, which will begin the day following the Hope Leilani's conclusion. The details will be provided this evening at the banquet to be held for all participants, however you have officially been cleared from the preliminaries, along with six others.

"Likewise, Serena, you've been registered for the Hope Leilani. The flow is pretty much the same as all the other Ceremonies: a course section, followed by a performance and battles. The only difference is that the event has slightly different rules, which will be given before each event is to take place. The Hope Leilani begins tomorrow morning, with the Course in the morning and the Performance through the afternoon and evening. The event itself will last three days. Those, in the meantime, are your room keys for the trainer's village. We also have our state of the art Pokémon Center, complete with an emergency team if needed."

"Thank you, Nurse Joy," Serena said, bowing a little. It was almost time for it all to begin. Nurse Joy smiled at them and returned to her work, especially since it seemed that there was someone waiting to register for the League behind them. Serena grabbed hold of Ash and began to pull him off to the phones. "Let's call our moms."

"Oh, right, that'd be good. I want to call all my Pokémon, too," Ash said with a laugh. Lillie seemed interested in this, clapping her hands together in interest and following them, Greninja right at her side. Rotom returned to Clemont and Bonnie, the former chastising the latter for her earlier action. Serena kept on that straight shot for the phones, finding an empty one and quickly dialing for her mother. Ash seemed to be grabbing all of his own pokeballs while also looking around for any other familiar faces. Serena figured she'd just see them all again at the banquet that evening.

"Oh, Serena!" called the voice of her mother within seconds. Serena faced the screen with a wide smile. "Somehow, I'm not surprised you called. The Hope Leilani, right?"

"Guess it must be broadcasted in other regions, huh?" Serena asked. Her mother nodded, and judging from the sounds on the other end, it sounded like she was doing dishes just below the phone's screen. That said pretty much one thing: she wasn't about to hop a plane and fly to Alola at any time.

"They're making it a big deal back here in Kalos," Grace admitted with a little laugh. Serena's eyes narrowed, and she could swear that she saw a floral-pattered envelope sitting near the edge of the sink. She had to wonder if her father had already sent a letter that got there after their meeting, and if so, had he told her mother about said meeting. Grace's body language suggested otherwise, but Serena wasn't about to push it in any single way. "Sorry I can't fly over, but apparently they're already reporting a full stadium for these events."

"That's all right, mom. Knowing that you're watching is more than enough for me, right now," Serena told her. She noticed that Ash and Lillie were there, hanging back. That prompted Serena to stand back and bring them all forward. "Most importantly, I have Ash and the others supporting me. Like Lillie!"

"Hello," Lillie said with a little wave in Grace's direction. Grace nodded in her own greeting to the blonde before focusing her eyes on her daughter. Serena stood up a little straighter.

"Serena, as your mother, I have only one request, then: win it all," she said. Serena's lips blossomed into a grin and she nodded. "I'll watch you every step of the way."

"Thanks, mom." That was all that needed to be said between mother and daughter, the connection cutting off soon after. Ash extricated himself from Serena's hold, stretching a little as he then entered his own number for Professor Oak's lab. Now, Serena had to wonder whether Samson Oak would be here as well, though there was no indication or reason that he would be. The line began ringing and soon answered, making Serena surprised that not only was Professor Oak on the screen, but Ash's mother as well.

"Heya, mom! Professor!" Ash called out. If he was hoping to surprise them, it didn't work at all. In fact, from what happened next, he turned out to be the one that was surprised. Both his mother and Professor Oak turned to the phone screen, but before they could greet Ash, the screen was suddenly mobbed by a whole group of Pokémon.

"Osha! Oshaaaa!" Oshawott cried, attaching himself to the screen, only to be pulled off by a rather annoyed Snivy. It seemed that they had all been waiting for Ash to make a call; obviously, the event of the first Alola League was a huge thing, enough that even Ash's Pokémon were anticipating it all the way in Kanto.

"Hey, you guys, it's great to see all of you! Have they all been doing well, Professor Oak?" Ash asked, craning his neck in an attempt to see the older professor and converse with him. Serena felt it best to not inform him that it would be impossible by nature of the screen.

"They've all been very energetic, Ash. Especially with the announcement of the League coming up," Professor Oak chuckled out heartily. Ash grinned at that, looking at all of his old Pokémon that had pulled back from the camera to be seen in a large group. Greninja and Pikachu both drew closer to greet their comrades in arms, while Ash released his other Pokémon.

"That's great to hear! Everyone, meet our new friends!" he said, throwing his hands out to his new team members, all of them raising a hand, paw or wing in greeting. They received a greeting in turn. His mother then stepped closer to the screen with a smile on her face. She almost looked a little surprised, but in a pleasant way.

"Oh my, you've certainly grown up even more," Delia said. Ash just nodded while Serena smiled at her boyfriend. It really was obvious from the way Ash had been holding himself that he had changed in a positive way. "I wish I could be there in person for your battle, but…"

"Yeah, we were told. It's pretty packed and crazy here," Ash laughed out. It was obvious that he wouldn't share any of the other details with her, not when it regarded putting himself in danger. Really, to Serena, it seemed that he didn't even  _want_  her there, because her life would be placed in far more danger at the epicenter of everything rather than away in Kanto; not that it was a problem with all of their friends, who were probably somewhere. "But as long as you and everyone cheer for me, I know that we can win it all."

"Oh? You're not planning on calling on some of your older Pokémon?" Professor Oak asked. Ash shook his head and smiled at the older man.

"I'd love to, but this is the Alola region. They really value nature and the bonds with your Pokémon upon everything else. I might not be from the region, but I can honor what they do by using all the Pokémon I caught here and battled with here. I hope you all understand." They certainly seemed to, their enthusiastic cries showcasing that they were happy to support from afar (except for Oshawott, who seemed to have gone white). Serena was pleased with it, while Lillie stepped a little forward.

"You have so many Pokémon!" she said pleasingly, an act that caught the attention of the two humans on the other side. Meanwhile, Serena's attention was caught by the approach of two expected and unexpected hyper individuals.

"Reena!" screamed one of them. Serena turned around just in time to find herself nearly tackled by the hyperactive girl shouting her nickname. She held her balance and looked down to see the diminutive form of Acerola hugging her. "It's been a real long time!"

"Acerola, I forgot that all the captains would be here!" Serena cried out, taking the girl's hands. Acerola grinned up at her, looking just as healthy and pumped up as ever, though with a glint to her eyes. She'd been informed of the upcoming battle, no doubt. "Though I thought you'd all just come for the League, not the Hope Leilani, as well."

"You're a friend, so I'd never pass on that opportunity! It'll be way fun to watch from the captains' box!" Acerola chirped out, clearly pleased to be there. Serena then looked up a little more and saw another familiar face standing just beyond the captain, one she'd not seen since their last battle.

"And how have you been, Maka?" The aspiring filmmaker straightened up, waving her hand a little to Serena from a small distance away. Acerola pulled back, releasing her hands as Ash's call to home came to an end. The perky girl chose that moment to greet Lillie, showing sudden surprise over the blonde's new outfit. Ash just drew back, waving at Maka and walking over to Clemont and Bonnie.

"I've been good. But the real question is how have  _you_  been?" Maka asked. She was wearing a playful grin, but her hands were on her hips in defiance. "Honestly, Serena! You went and totally vanished like a month ago! Not that I was looking to rope you into a contract or anything…I wouldn't do something like that at all!"

"Sorry, I've been busy," Serena laughed out, tucking some of her hair behind her ear. She wasn't about to share the real reason she'd been busy. Maka watched her with narrowed eyes, but eventually decided it wasn't worth the effort and ended up shrugging.

"Well, that's okay. You're here now for the Hope Leilani and we're gonna duke it out in grand style!" the black-haired girl said with a grin. She was still the same Maka as ever, a fact that Serena appreciated. It left only a few of her rivals remaining, and while she knew Jessie and her "fan club" were somewhere around the area, it still left the one she also hadn't heard from or seen of since their last meeting on Blush Mountain, so very long ago.

"That's right. Only, I'll be the one becoming the Ali'i ka Leilani," Serena assured her. Maka just shot a challenging glare back. At that moment, the doors to the building opened loudly, making the two of them look up to the newcomer. Serena was surprised enough to raise an eyebrow.

"Daddy? !" Bonnie cried out at the sight of an exuberant Meyer having entered the reception area. He looked as healthy as ever, though it made Serena wonder just why he hadn't been at the battle before. "What are  _you_  doing here?"

"Oh, you know…" Meyer chuckled out, conveying his intended message to those who knew of what he was subtly referencing quite accurately. "I thought I'd drop by and see if you were all here yet. Want some lunch?"

"But we have a banquet that's-"

"Excellent! We have a lot to catch up on, kids! Korrina is waiting, too, since I invited her along." Ash turned back from where he was, silent in his complete stupor. Serena agreed wholeheartedly with the sentiment, blinking as she watched Meyer drag both of his children off like some sort of kidnapper, with Rotom snagged in Clemont's grasp. He hadn't even greeted them, leaving anyone else there with naught but a shrug.

"Ooh! That's a great idea! Leelee, let's go explore the village and have some fun!" Acerola said, dragging Lillie off without another word. It was all entirely random, and as quick as a flash, leaving only Serena, Maka and Ash behind within seconds. Ironically, they were the only three to whom the banquet mattered.

"You guys settled in yet, or did you just get here?" Maka asked kindly, twirling around. Her red ribbon bounced a little as she walked slightly forward. Their silence seemed to be the answer that Maka was looking for. "Well, hey, why don't you all do your thing at your place and then we can head to the banquet together!"

"Guess that works," Ash agreed. Serena had no reason to argue, so she took Ash's hand, quickly looking at a map of the area, before exiting the stadium area and continuing on towards the trainer's village. Maka was with them, though calmer than she usually was. It made sense, given that she was putting herself into a serious mode for the competition ahead of them.

That made Serena also put her head on straight. This wasn't the time to think about anything but all the battles ahead, something even Ash and his Pokémon were outright focused on (though all but Pikachu and Greninja were returned to their pokeballs). It made them a little stilted in terms of any conversation that could be happening, but that seemed to suit them all just fine. Instead, the couple quickly dropped their things off in their room, which was really more of a cabin, furnished with six beds and all the amenities one would need for their stay there.

Following that, the three took to exploring the village and all it seemed to have to offer on their way to the banquet. There were the nicely designed houses and various food stands lining the village streets. People chattered and flitted about, clearly excited about the event that would be happening tomorrow in the biggest of ways. Maka broke her serious veneer for a few moments, as well, snapping quick pictures with her fingers that she would then rapidly draw with glee. The girl hadn't changed much in the last month, and Serena felt that was a positive thing. Occasionally, Serena could see others that were attending, like James and Meowth clearly at a concession stand, or even Brock on the town with Aria of all people (Croagunk was lurking behind him the entire way).

There were also some more embarrassing encounters like Miette with Sawyer, before they were interrupted by May, Dawn and Astrid, who appeared to have been on a binging spree when it came to food. Alain was also about the town with Mairin and Professor Sycamore, their own anticipation clearly growing. At some point, Serena could swear she noticed her father in the crowd, but that was the extent of  _that_  particular interaction (if one could call it that). They did happen to stop and talk a bit with Team Nova, particularly the excited Seamus, who kept saying "This is going to be the best Pokémon League ever!" like he was a little kid who had just watched Ash in the Orange Championship all over again.

Eventually, though, the sun began to sink on Mount Lanakila, making the air even colder than before (though they didn't notice much, given their walking activities). That was a clear sign to head for the castle that served as the crux and center point between the stadium and the village. In no time, they had arrived there with all those others that were set to participate in the events; it turned out to be quite the large number between both of them.

"Alola, Ash!" Hau cried out the second he saw them, racing forward to bump fists with Ash. Serena giggled, especially when Gladion was at a table with a drink, rolling his eyes liberally. Scanning around, Serena noticed Maka running off for some food, before she saw Jessie, dressed in her guise of Jessilie and looking as haughty as ever. She nevertheless offered a nod in Serena's direction. "So…did you beat him?"

"Totally. Pikachu and the rest pulled their weight!" Pikachu agreed, hopping off of his shoulder to join Pipi at a table stacked high with malasadas. Hau looked impressed with a grin, just as Gladion yanked him back.

"We're not here for a social call," Gladion reminded him, but it didn't stop Hau from smiling. Serena was honestly surprised that they hadn't tried to kill each other yet. Knowing the three boys would be caught up in some manner of argument or conversation with one another, Serena decided to go and get some food, taking a more detailed look around the room. She noticed there were two screens, one with the League symbol and another with a flower. It really wasn't all that surprising to see those, and nor was it surprising to see Kahili there, alongside Olivia, as the two women discussed something with Miss Akela. The violet-haired woman turned her head and briefly smiled at Serena before returning to her conversation.

"Serena, it's been a long time. You look well." Serena stiffened at the voice, swallowing a little before turning to face the newcomer.

"Keoni. It has," was her measured response before she could fully see him. When Serena finally got the complete view of him, she noticed that he looked to have come in from some porch outside the hall, a scarf wrapped around his neck as he regarded her. Serena looked at him, not saying much more. His eyes seemed different. They weren't as sharp or condescending, somehow. It was like the month or so since she'd last seen him, he had spent soul searching…or something. She was probably just fooling herself, but she chose to offer him the benefit of the doubt. "How have you been?"

"Busy," was his rather laconic answer. He shoved his hands in his pockets. "Preparing for tomorrow, of course. I'd imagine  _he's_  been preparing for the League?"

"We've all been preparing for the last month," Serena answered, though Keoni failed to pick up on the double meaning. He simply nodded in acceptance of it. She felt it was way too weird: the boy that had constantly flirted with her was now acting like he held no sense of attraction towards her whatsoever.

"Mm, good to hear it. Wouldn't be worth the win if you weren't your best," he said, reaching up to remove his muffler. Now that he had, Serena felt like she saw some scratch marks on his face, as though he hadn't spent that month in a prissy mansion. "Same with him. Wouldn't be worth watching him battle if he wasn't at his best. So…just tell him that for me. As for you and me, we'll meet on the Course, tomorrow."

"Okay…" Serena said. Keoni just turned around and went to go get some food. At the same moment, Ash approached her, all while the frenetic attitude around the hall began to grow. Kukui seemed to be moving on to the stage, prompting Akela to stand with him.

"Was that Keoni?" Ash asked of her. She nodded, sharing the same look of near disbelief with him. "He seemed…different. Wonder what happened to him…"

"Who knows," Serena breathed out. The only guess she could make was that from having slapped him that time ago, the boy seemed to get his head on straight, or something like that. Suddenly, Kukui's claps were filling the room, and she and Ash turned, seeing two more people now on the stage with Kukui and Akela. Both of them looked familiar. "Isn't that Kalas? From the KTT?"

"I think it is…" Ash responded. Their suspicions were proven correct almost mere seconds later as the man in question stepped forward.

"Greetings, competitors!" he cried out, making everyone focus in on him with rapt anticipation. The screens began to lighten up, displaying various pictures. On the one screen, Serena saw her face, along with thirty-one others. On the other side of the screen were seven pictures, including Ash, Hau, and Gladion at the top, with numerous others below. "I am the host and commentator of the League, Harrison Kalas, working in conjunction with the beautiful and fair Maika Olelo!"

"And it's a real pleasure for the both of us to be working together for these great events!" Maika announced, coming to Kalas' side. Both continued on without any seeming delay, especially with the competitors' attentions riveted on them. "We're excited to be facilitating these events with Professor Kukui and Miss Akela, and to inform each and every one of you of how the events will proceed, moving forward. To those participating in the Hope Leilani, you've already been informed of the general flow, though I wish to note that the winner will not be crowned until following the League and certain other events!"

"Other events?" Serena questioned. She wasn't sure if Maika was referring to the upcoming battle on the Day of Stars, or something else entirely. Kalas didn't answer, either.

"As for the Lanakila Conference, we will begin the day after the Hope Leilani finals!" he cried out, drawing their attention to the screen with the numerous participants. "Seven trainers have already been chosen to clear the preliminaries, which means the rest will battle it out to earn a top spot for the sixty-four that will battle it out in full!"

Ash seemed to gaze over to Hau and Gladion, all three acknowledging each other, promising each other to do the very best they could. Kalas was continuing on. "The format has been decided upon, and the matchups for the first round, an intense Battle Royal that withers the competition to just sixteen trainers in one round, will be posted that evening before it begins. In the meantime, we'll hold the preliminaries starting tomorrow night, with the battles finishing just before those matchups are posted."

"Sounds like it'll be tough," Serena told Ash. Kalas was finishing off his introductions, mostly telling everyone to enjoy the banquet that evening (as if they hadn't had enough recently). "I mean, you have to fight three other trainers just to even move past the first round."

"Yeah, but once we do that, we only need to win four more battles."

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed, running back up to Ash and sharing what looked like a cupcake with him. Serena was glad to see him so excited for the battle, and it made her get even more so for her own competition. She looked out at all of her rivals. Maka was talking with Jessie, surprisingly holding civil conversation, while Keoni just sat comfortably on a chair, chewing at a malasada (for what was left of the pastries). More importantly was the sight of Miss Akela, striding out towards the porch. Seeing that Ash would be fine without her, Serena took off after the violet-haired woman, eventually finding her leaning against a railing outside.

"Miss Akela," she called out, drawing the woman's attention on the cold air. Snow was falling down, sprinkling into the woman's hair. "I saw you come outside, and I just wanted to thank you, for inviting me to do the Ceremonies all that time ago. It's really helped me figure some things out. After pushing myself so hard, it really helped me realize the truth of things."

"I'm glad to hear that," Akela responded, smiling softly. She breathed out, her breath puffing upwards. "I look forward to seeing who will reach the Ali'i ka Leilani. If anyone could be worthy of it, I would say that it's you."

"Thank you, but me and my Pokémon will only try our best, you know," Serena assured her. Akela liked that response, because she kept smiling. Hearing some of the jubilation inside, Serena walked forward, feet crunching on some of the gathered snow. "If I can ask, Miss Akela, you said that when you chose me, I reminded you of someone, and that I made you smile…"

"Yes…you reminded me of myself, of course," Akela chuckled out. She turned, placing her chin on her hand. "The drive and passion to see it through. I saw myself in you, even the pain."

"The pain?" She had certainly felt her own share of pain, but never had she truly felt that from Akela. Doubt, perhaps, in some of the choices she had made, but that was the only extent she'd perceived.

"I lost my fiancée, six years ago, you see," Akela responded. Serena closed her eyes; once again, Michael's actions reared their ugly heads. "At the time, I was the Ali'i ka Leilani, but when I got the news, I lost myself to the grief. I wanted to be someone that could bring joy to many, but my dancing and the Ceremonies would no longer do it. That's how I came back as a fashion designer, originally a second passion of mine.

"But when I saw you, and how you wanted to make people smile…I felt like it could fill this hole. That if this one girl, if you, could truly make me smile again…then the pain was worth it." Serena was surprised by how much she was sharing, and just  _what_  she was sharing. It made her feel a little unworthy, but hearing her words firmly solidified what she already believed in her heart. "And you did. Which is why I'm very much looking forward to this Hope Leilani…and whatever we choose for what lies beyond.

"Show me your smile, Serena. Because I believe it can lead others back to their own, in the end." Her words spoken, Akela drew herself up again, and proceeded inside the hall once more. Serena just remained in the snow, watching her. Knowing that the Hope Leilani would truly begin the second she stepped inside that hall, Serena graced her own lips with an upturn.

_One smile at a time._  Then she walked back in.

* * *

"Grrrreeeetings, ladies and gentlemen and a hearty alola to you all!" Maika's voice boomed around the stadium. The crowd roared and cheered, pulsing with the excitement that the Hope Leilani was about to bring to them all. Serena looked up, seeing just how packed the entire stadium was; when her mother had told her there was no room, she hadn't been lying. "The time has come for our competitors! Our brave participants! Those who have danced, battled and struggled to earn their three Leis, all in preparation for this very day, to be revealed!

"It's the opening of the HOPE LEILANI!"

"YEEEEEAH!" The cry erupted from the crowd, full of enjoyment. Serena stepped forward a little bit, all of the competitors on her side doing the same. They were rimming the giant stadium, an almost cavernous abyss at their feet, threatening to spill them over. Hovering above was Maika, commentating the entire thing. Serena gripped at her new dress, like a combination of her usual performance dress and the one she'd gotten in Laverre City. On it were floral prints. Ash had said it looked good on her before she'd left, at the very least.

"Standing before you are thirty-two competitors, all standing tall after having completed their journeys to Mount Lanakila's vaunted summit! This is the test of everything they've accumulated thus far," Maika called to the excited and tittering crowd. The ground began to tremble, what was obviously the stage that was going to be used for the Course now emerging from the ground. "I'm your host and all-around commentator, Maika Olelo! With me in the box is famed commentator, Harry Kalas, from the Kalos region!"

There was another cry from the crowd as the ground continued to shudder. Serena looked across the abyss, noticing a panel of five judges that were across that way. Two of them were Nurse Joys, while Kiawe seemed to have been chosen as another, as well as Miss Akela, topped off with Kukui, of all people. Flicking her sight upwards, she also saw the captains' box, where all the captains and Kahunas had likely gathered. It really felt like the endpoint of her entire journey through Alola. She breathed in.

"So, without any more announcements, let's begin the Course Portion of the Hope Leilani!" With Maika's cry, the stage finished emerging and Serena's eyes widened. It was the most elaborate course that was before her, unlike any ever seen in her Ceremonies thus far. It must have been the same for the crowd and those other participants with her, standing before it. The whole entire thing seemed to have been split into four connected sections, with the middle being the meeting point. Serena held to her pokeballs, breathing in with the growing anticipation.

"Looks different," Maka mumbled from next to her. Serena had hardly remembered her friend and rival being there, but she nodded. In fact, upon noticing her, she could also see the ever-confident Jessie, Meowth by her side, and a rather stoic looking Keoni, placed somewhere across from her.

"This is, what we call…the Ultimate Relay Course!" Maika called, stirring up the crowd once more. "There are four segments, each leading to the middle. Trainers are allowed to choose any portion they choose in any order they choose, but in order to pass this segment, they will have to complete all four. It is a test of teamwork and precision! Only one part of the relay can be active at a time for any particular trainer, requiring the use of four Pokémon. If one does not have four Pokémon, then they will have to use their first one for the final course.

"The goal, of course, is to collect the ingredients for a wonderful malasada, though you won't have to worry about the baking part! Our judges will be able to tell from the selection alone. Be warned, though, don't tarry too long on any part, because only sixteen trainers will be moving on. If you finish any portion as the last of the three to do so, you'll be dropped! Further, four of the trainers will not be making it on from that final round of malasada judging! And lastly, as the Hope Leilani is a culmination of all the skills our participants have gained up to this point, the use of Z-Moves on the Course  _will_  be allowed! So, participants, choose your participants!"

Serena looked over the field, noticing the differences between each distinct segment. There seemed to be a wide field, with electricity suddenly bursting from it like a geyser, while on another there were rings of fire that obviously needed to be passed through. Then there was a water challenge that looked like a straight up race, and finally a rocky hill course with some cliff-climbing and a slide down to the center. It would require the utmost of precision to make sure she made it to at least the top twenty. Already, she had a plan.

An attendant was walking up, or multiple attendants, with boxes to label each particular field. Next to them were numbers, choosing which portion Serena would want to tackle first. She instantly thought it over and punched in the numbers, placing her pokeballs down in the box. Next to her, Maka was doing the same thing. Then the attendants backed away and proceeded to the course. There was another shuddering, and Serena felt herself being lifted up and protected by a railing, just as all the trainers were. It was a new and shocking experience, but from where she was when it stopped, she could see the entire course.

"If everyone is ready, the course will begin in 3…2…1…Commence!"

Like a signal, all thirty-two of the Pokémon burst forth from their pokeballs, ready at each of their separate stages. Serena gripped on to the railing and looked immediately over to the mountain where Sandshrew had emerged. He wasn't alone, Meowth having arrived right next to him, along with a few others. Serena wasn't going to worry about that, however.

"Sandshrew, don't worry about what's ahead! Just listen to my voice! Start moving!" Serena called to her youngest Pokémon, ignoring all the other calls around her. Sandshrew appeared to have heard, giving a little jump in the air and running forward on his small legs. She knew it was possible that they'd finish in a low placement right then, but that was okay. Sandshrew would do his best. Meowth was already taking the ultimate lead, running forward on the small path and leaping from rock to rock with a smirk. Clearly Jessie had been preparing, especially if her own smirk across the way was anything to judge by. Sandshrew was much slower, the other Pokémon on their portion already passing him, but he was making strides to reach the large cliff that bisected the middle.

Over on other portions of the course, Maka and Keoni were clearly leading the pack. Ninetales was beautifully freezing every portion of the water course that she stepped on, while Mele strode through the electric geysers like they were a bath. Serena chose not to worry about her competition; they'd catch up in no time. Over on the rocky cliffs, Meowth was scrabbling up the side while Jessie watched, actually looking to contemplate a way down the cliff. Sandshrew, tired and heaving, finally approached the large jutting cliff.

"All right, Sandshrew, let's get moving! Use Metal Claw to climb up the cliff!" Serena called out confidently. Sandshrew perked up, giving a cry she could barely hear over the cacophony of the others. His small claw flashed out, elongating itself and glowing a ferocious silver. Then it reached up and dug into the surface of the rock. Sandshrew lifted himself upwards. "Keep going! You can do this!"

"Shreeeeew!" Sandshrew groaned out, but he didn't give up. They had trained too much together over the last month, that despite his youth, he was one hard worker. Meowth had reached the top while Ninetales was already reaching the center from her part of the course.

"All right, Meowth, this is probably going to hurt, so just leap right off, tuck into a ball and roll down!" Jessie said, clearly finding her plan rather brilliant to herself. Serena could have sworn she heard Meowth complaining about not being a gymnast, but he followed the commands anyway. He soared from the top of the mountain and attempted Jessie's strategy. It happened to work almost perfectly, though Meowth hardly had any control. Now Serena saw Mele finishing his part of the course. They were all finishing before her, but Sandshrew wasn't giving up yet.

"One last push, Sandshrew!" Serena called out, raising her wrists up, a silver glow exuding from her Z-Ring. She crossed them, and began making the movements for a Z-Move. The power surrounded her brave little partner. "Corkscrew Crash!"

"Sand…shrew!" he cried out, his body beginning to spin rapidly, turning into a glowing silver. Then the Mouse Pokémon blasted forward, impaling the top of the mountain and pulling himself up through its peak. Now was the time for them to start gaining, even as their opponents were completing their tasks. Sandshrew aimed downward with his Z-Move, and Maika commented on it from above, to the crowd's oohing amazement. New Pokémon were entering the ring, particularly Wobbuffet on the electric field and…well, Serena figured that two once-vain (or still-vain) people, had to think the same, given that Lord Meowth was now scaling the rock path behind Sandshrew.

"Sandshrew, use Powder Snow and Rapid Spin down the path!" Serena called out. Sandshrew nearly collided with the path, but spun out of his Z-Move to ready himself to enact Serena's commands. It was a move they had since refined from their first attempts at it back at the Wela Volcano Ceremony, mostly thanks to Sandshrew's new moveset. Sandshrew reared back in midair, opening his little mouth, and blew the ice crystals that froze the slope downward. Then he began to spin and landed on the slick surface, beginning to roll on to the ice, quickly shooting downward with speed. He was starting to gain in the rankings. Serena looked at the leaderboard; they were yet in the top twenty as Sandshrew shot down the slope and into the center. An image display came up for malasada ingredients. Instantly, Serena thought about what would make Hau happy and chose an option. That was the easiest part.

"Braixen brai!" cried her most loyal Pokémon, emerging from her pokeball for the next part of the race. They still had a chance to try and catch up, even with the electricity shooting up around them. She looked concerned for a moment, and Serena knew she had to block her fellow opponents, including a zipping Wobbuffet that was using his Mirror Coat to reflect attacks away. Some of them slammed into the opponents on the same section of the course, making Serena realize there had never been a rule to call against it, unlike the one allowing her own earlier use of a Z-Move.

"Don't worry, and follow my commands," Serena called. It was similar to Heahea in a way, a need for that sort of faith between trainer and Pokémon. Braixen nodded. "Start running!"

"Brai!" Braixen called out. Serena made sure to zero her focus in on her own Pokémon, the erupting lightning not allowing for a single misstep on their road. Braixen ran forward, keeping her branch aloft as she ran. Serena gazed at the ground, looking and memorizing the spots of lightning to perfection.

"To the right!" she called out and Braixen did as ordered, leaping to the right, but forward, as electricity blasted out. "Now, to the left, then strike ahead of you with Psyshock!" The commands were carried out flawlessly in their execution, showing the strong bond between them. As a result, Braixen began to pick up her speed, despite having no true way of defending herself. While Keoni and Jessie were certainly way ahead of her in the rankings, she was still moving up the ranks, even as the bottom three fell off. Serena even noticed those particular participants' podiums lower suddenly. "Now, use your wand to ground it!"

"Sen!" Braixen cried, flipping into the air and sticking her wand into a spot within the ground. She leapt away as the electricity burst outward, stopped by the wood. Soon as it ended, Braixen grabbed ahold of her wand once more and dashed for the center of the entire course. Serena's hand reached upward, gripping at her chest a little. Another burst of electricity appeared in front of Braixen, but the two worked together mentally, sending a Hidden Power out to interrupt everything that was in their way. Then the Fox Pokémon leapt through the gap in it and rolled into the center. Another option popped up for Serena and she clicked on it, finally getting the hang of things.

"Oh my! Jessilie is using a…very interesting strategy here!" Now having made her way to the third portion of the course, ironically the very one that Keoni and Maka both seemed to have embarked upon as well, she offered herself a chance to look at Jessie's strategy. Her mouth almost fell open. Bewear was running through the course at a breakneck pace…on the water. She looked positively exuberant, as well, like Jessie had promised her food…or hugs.

_No time for that_ , Serena reminded herself, instead facing the course that was the rings of fire. Ula was dancing through the flames with the utmost abandon, while Serena could also see Minior floating ahead through the rings, commanded simply by Keoni. To her surprise, the boy wasn't wearing a smirk as he stood upon his podium, though he did look at her and give a lengthy sigh. However, on her end, Pancham was looking ready. "All right, Pancham, let's gain some ground! We've done this a lot before in practicing our routines!"

"Champan!" Pancham agreed and he began to run forward on his little legs. In seconds of doing so, he'd reached what looked like a springboard, bouncing on it and flinging himself into the air. He tucked into a ball and rolled right through the flaming ring. Three more participants lowered around them. Pancham passed through effortlessly and continued to run towards the next one, low to the ground.

"Roll along and use a slight Dark Pulse," Serena said to her partner. Pancham obeyed, tucking in and rolling along. After a slight jettison of Dark Pulse, Pancham bounced through the next ring. The others then came easy, even if both Ula and Minior finished well ahead. In fact, it seemed that Gourgeist was floating on to this portion, now. Serena wasn't sure where she was on the leaderboards, but was determined to simply succeed at this portion. "Now, use Stone Edge to get to the last ones!"

"Pan pan!" Pancham called out, flipping forward and creating pillars of stone that jutted straight up towards the final rings of fire. He then bounded above them all in one leap, so that he could land and run across them. With a final great leap, Pancham spun, twirling through the air and all three fire rings without getting a single scratch, even as they began to shift to a bigger size for the incoming Gourgeist along the course. Pancham touched down in the center.

"One more to go," Serena breathed out, easily choosing the next ingredient needed to make Hau the perfect malasada. She could have made it for Ash, but that would have been too easy, and she liked the encouragement that Hau's smiles gave to their entire group. It was the thought of that one smile driving her on as Primarina finally emerged from her pokeball, and Serena grinned, herself. "Thanks, Jessie. Wouldn't have thought of an attack…Primarina, use Disarming Voice!"

"Primaaaaaaa!"

"Serena is employing just as brilliant of a strategy on the water course, while Maka and her Aki take control of the rock course. Might we have some frontrunners for winning this entire event?" Serena ignored Maika's predictions as Primarina's powerful voice echoed across the entire course. The Pokémon there either fainted, or struggled enough from the sound that they stopped moving momentarily.

"Now, swim for it!" Serena cried. Primarina leapt in an arc, glittering in the lights of the dome above them, before hitting the water and cutting through it. Her speed was tremendous, and for something that was based almost entirely on speed in this case, she was leading the top of the pack. That wasn't to say she was winning in every category. Aki was floating over the rock course, Gourgeist was protecting herself with her plants on her own final stretch, and Keoni's Bruxish looked to have a sixth sense for its rivals. There were also some others that seemed to be converging upon the center at the same time. However, Primarina was a goddess of the sea, slicing the water gracefully. Some sounds dinged out at her opponents finishing, but Primarina wasn't outdone, leaping out from the water and gracefully atop the center with a misting sheen. Serena slammed a button on her final, and easy to make, choice of ingredient.

Her caddy suddenly lowered, just as Maka's did, and some others around her, signaling that they had finished the course in its entirety. Serena looked down to her small device, showing the options she had selected. Around them, one by one, they all began to lower as the crowd began to cheer louder and louder until…

"It's over! The Top Twenty have been finalized!" Maika boomed out over the arena. Serena looked over to the course area and saw all of her Pokémon swiftly returning to her side gleefully. She wasn't the only one reuniting with her Pokémon, with all of Maka's film crew flapping to her side next to her. "The judges will now break for lunch to make a decision. All remaining competitors are to stay here and have lunch delivered for them."

"Whew, what an opener!" Maka expressed, wiping at her brow. Her film crew surrounded her cheerfully and Serena looked up to the scoreboard, displaying the twenty faces there. Everyone she knew was on that board, meaning they'd hopefully, or likely, all continue on. The attendants soon came around with their lunches, which Serena and her Pokémon accepted gratefully, briefly taking a look towards the crowd. Maka quickly shoveled in her food, some of it falling in crumbs upon her dress, which she brushed off. Serena just continued looking up into the crowd, heart swelling at the sight of Ash standing and cheering. He wasn't alone, considering that Clemont, Bonnie, Lillie, Hau and even the others like Dawn were all sitting there, watching with their own cheers.

"Everyone, we've come so far," Serena said to her Pokémon after finishing their food. She reached her hand forward, and even Sylveon popped out to join her feelers, with the others reaching in. It was a promise she knew they could have made before it all began, but with the first hurdle nearly cleared, she decided it was better saved for then. "So, for everyone, and for each other, let's keep on smiling and win this whole thing!"

"And the judges are back, having made their decision on the sixteen that will be moving on to the Performance Portion!" Maika called out enthusiastically. "Now, before these announcements are made, the participants must be made aware of two things. The first is that the order which the participants are shown will be the order of the next round. Likewise, the performance round is split into two this time, the theme and freestyle, with each weighted equally and are performed back to back, offering a different challenge at this advanced stage, especially when competitors are allowed to use up to two Pokémon, as well as Z-Moves! And, of course, the theme is that of falling snow! So, without further ado, our sixteen finalists are…"

Serena turned, snapping her gaze over to the screen and she blinked. First on the screen was her own face, indicating that she had cleared the round and was the first to perform. That was fair enough, helping her draw herself to her full height. The stadium was sinking downwards, now replaced with what looked like a regular stage for performances. Other faces continued after hers, including all three of her rivals, firing her up inside. Then, Maika's voice spoke, calling for her to begin her performance, not another break given.

"Well, everyone, let's do this," she said. After returning Braixen, Sylveon and Pancham, Serena walked forward, straight for the center of the stage. Then she looked up and saw her friends, smiling at them. Round Two of the Hope Leilani was about to begin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I guess a slightly shorter opening to the Hope Leilani than I thought? But admittedly, there's only so much you can do in a single chapter before it all falls apart. However, I hope it still has that sort of final big feel to it, especially as it continues to grow. I'd like to think the course was rather fun this time (considering it's the last one) and I hope you all enjoyed.
> 
> The Hope Leilani is continuing on, and we'll see whether Serena can pull off a clutch victory! Until then, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	15. A Link

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Hope Leilani continues! Not much else to say other than that. Please enjoy Chapter 15!

Chapter 15

A Link

"Yeah! Yeah! Go Serena!" Bonnie's voice cheered out amidst the rest of the screaming crowd. Clemont reached out from his seat and yanked his sister back down, barely able to even hold on to Chespin, who looked thoroughly excited at the events taking place on the stage below. Then again, Ash reasoned, Chespin had always seemed to enjoy watching performances, no matter what. He just laughed about it, scratching at Pikachu's ears. Next to him, Lillie was on the veritable edge of her seat, gripping tightly to Komala and the immobile Nebby both. He wasn't sure if she was concerned for Serena's prospects, or simply watching with eager anticipation. Either way, he chose to say something by leaning over to her.

"Don't worry about Serena," he reminded her, placing a hand on her shoulder with comfort. "She's the best there is and will definitely succeed. We've all gotten this far, haven't we?"

"You're right" Lillie indicated, clenching her fists and bringing them to her chest. It didn't make her move back on the seat, though, and Ash wasn't going to bother in trying to stop that. Instead, he just shrugged a little. That's when he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned back to see Dawn sitting there with a sheepish grin. In fact, a lot of their friends were all seated there, having met up prior to Serena leaving for the preparation rooms. The only ones that seemed to not be there were Seamus and the others (who could only find seats on the other side of the stadium during the Hope Leilani, with a promise to be closer come League time) and Gladion, who was likely still training for the League.

"So…these Ceremonies are like Showcases and Contests, right?" she asked. In her lap, Piplup was sucking on a large cup and digging into a bucket of popcorn (well, more like arguing about the whole thing with May).

"Something like that," Ash answered her. Dawn appeared to accept that as the easiest answer, shrugging and sitting back in her chair. Ash turned back, looking at all of his friends that were there. Most of them were clearly unaware of the way the whole Leilani Ceremony worked in the first place, but he was glad that they could be here to at least support Serena, instead of being off exploring the village. Even Misty, Iris and Cilan, who appeared remarkably unfamiliar with the processes, when compared to Brock, May and Dawn, were watching with some interest. Granting, Brock was more interested in Aria, who he was seated next to.

Just before he managed to face back to the arena and the stage that was there, Ash caught sight of Sawyer and Miette, the latter watching with her fingers interlocked. Out of all of Serena's old rivals (or maybe still current, he wasn't really sure) he was surprised that Miette had been the one to find time to come and watch, even if that was obvious, given the others hadn't made it to Alola. She was even paying attention the  _most_  out of all of them, as if trying to get a measure of Serena for any of their future encounters. It made Ash think of his own rivals, one of them sitting a few chairs away with a plate of malasadas that he was offering to the others.

"First up for the Performance Portion is the lovely Serena! Let's see what kind of combinations she can pull off for us to watch today!" Maika announced to the crowd, her hovering craft reattaching to what looked like a box. Ash briefly flitted his eyes up to said commentator box, recognizing that Kalas hadn't said a word in some time; this was Maika's show. Ash gripped his pants with a look of encouragement.

"Come on, you can do this part, no problem," he breathed through his teeth. Serena stood front and center, Primarina and Sandshrew at her side and ready for their big performances.

"Let's go!" Serena cried, tapping her foot. In her new dress, she looked especially like she was flowing around the stage, and was a beautiful contrast to the blue coloration of the Pokémon she was partnered with. "Primarina, into the air with a spinning Aqua Jet!"

"Minaaa!" Primarina called out, elegant in voice and movement. Water surrounded her figure and she shot off to the sky, the oohs of the crowd following the movement. She spun around as Serena began to dance across the stage, remaining under her and the falling drops of water, descending like a soft rain. Already, she was into the next part of her performance.

"Now, Sandshrew, fire Ice Balls upward!" Serena called, stopping in place and holding her hand upwards. Sandshrew angled upwards, forming a solid orb of ice that he then sent firing straight up into the air. He followed it with a few more. The water from the Aqua Jet landed upon them, freezing and dripping off like little ice particles while they remained suspended. Serena got into a crouch. "Let's work together! Primarina, fire a Bubblebeam, and Sandshrew, freeze it with Powder Snow!"

"Shreeew!" Sandshrew called out cheerfully. Primarina's water split apart from around her and she aimed her bubbles downwards. They didn't fire off like Piplup's bubbles though, remaining slow moving as Sandshrew blew the freezing particles outward that froze the bubbles in midair, like beautiful bits of garland. Serena now flipped backwards, her Pokémon with her, and they landed upon the bubbles, which began to move as they danced atop them, supporting all of their weights quite well.

"So much fun! I wanna dance, too!" Bonnie said. Dedenne and Squishy clearly agreed with her, and even Bluey was watching in fascination.

"All right, time to use Rapid Spin, Sandshrew!" Ash watched with a smile on his face as Sandshrew began to spin atop the bubble he was on. Then he shot off like a spinning top, slamming into the bubbles and knocking them all around and into each other. Even Serena and Primarina's bubble platforms were knocking about from it, sending out little flecks of ice. The snow theme set for her was definitely going strong. Sandshrew spun out, landing in Serena's arms as she spun with a giddy smile. "Aqua Jet all around us!"

"Prima!" Primarina cried, blasting off from her frozen surface with the water veil again. She spun in the air, making it look like Serena was underneath a glistening waterfall. Then Serena threw Sandshrew into the air and flipped off the bubble.

"Use Metal Claw!" she cried. Sandshrew was spinning through the air, but he righted himself with a cheer, claws extending to a brilliant metal sheen. He then spun forward, slicing through the lingering bubbles and balls of ice in the air. They broke apart like glittering and beautiful snow. Ash found himself clapping in joy at her performance and the joy she was taking from it. Even Lillie was having the most joyous of times as Serena landed on the stage. "Color it up with Disarming Voice!"

"Marina!" Primarina shouted out. The cry was powerful, blasting out waves of pink hearts from her voice that impacted with the glittering snow, tinging it a beautiful pink color as it fell.

"Now, for the themed finale!" Serena called out, spinning forward and raising both hands to the air in order to catch Sandshrew, only to throw him back up again. "Use Rapid Spin and Metal Claw while Primarina uses Bubblebeam!"

"Sand!" Sandshrew squeaked out, beginning to spin in midair as his metallic claws jutted out. Primarina was sending out a near cyclone of bubbles, but Sandshrew dove into it, cutting them apart and freezing them with his body alone until he slashed them apart completely, sending the bubbles into frozen, blue glitter that fell softly. Then he and Primarina both landed on the stage, on both sides of Serena.

The crowd cheered in appreciation for the beautiful performance and Bonnie was even giving it a standing ovation. Of course, from the looks on the judges' faces, this was far from over, as per the rules. Serena's hands lowered, and though her smile didn't drop, her eyes spoke a different story: she was ready to get very serious now. Bending down, Ash watched as Serena returned Sandshrew to his pokeball, and instead called out Pancham, the latter thumping his chest to show he was carrying out his task.

"Now it's time for Serena's freestyle performance, so let's see what she can do!" Maika shouted out, forcing the crowd to quiet down and wait with bated breath.

"Primarina, Sparkling Aria!" Serena called out, throwing her hand out and letting her bright Z-Ring sparkle upon it. Primarina formed the orb of water where she was, complete with a smile, full of glee at performing on the stage. Then she launched it. "Trap it in place with Stone Edge!"

"Pancham!" Pancham called, flipping through the air and slamming upon the stage with his hands. The stones all jutted up at once, like a surrounding tomb that caught the orb of water and held it in thrall. Serena had flipped up now, and in a second, Pancham and she had landed atop the stones. The two instantly began to dance along it. At the same time, Primarina was cloaked in water again, circling the collection of stones. It created a very glimmering effect on the stones, and Ash could swear he heard the popcorn bucket drop behind him.

"Now, Arm Thrust!" Serena said with joy. Pancham flipped up and then brought his glowing arm onto the stone. They and the water held within burst, gushing out in a beautiful sight that started out like a fountain and then traveled upward in a mist. Ash could already tell as he watched Serena that this performance was meant to be the short and sweet finisher to what had come before. "Primarina, make some bubbles!"

"Prima!" Primarina said, spinning out of her Aqua Jet and firing the substantive bubbles around. Serena caught one and tossed it off to Pancham, before kicking another one back to Primarina. They truly looked to be having the most enjoyable time imaginable, bouncing around with the bubbles. As Ash watched, he noticed, however, that they weren't hitting them around completely aimlessly, knocking them all towards a specific point above them that Pancham soon leapt towards, encapsulating himself within the bubble.

"Now, let's go!" Serena cried, coming out of a spin and crossing her arms. Her Z-Ring glowed powerfully, as did Primarina. Then her arms made the movements for a Water type Z-Move. Recognizing it, Ash grinned madly. Like a burst of light, it seemed as though a spotlight was shining upon Primarina, coloring her as she gushed with water all around, joining in with a giant orb. The crowd was in awe of the move, ambitious in its scope. "Oceanic Operetta and Dark Pulse!"

Like that, Serena raised her hands and seemed to flick her fingers forward with a rather cute expression. The coalesced orb fired out for Pancham slowly, soon taking over the bubble he was in. Within seconds, though, Pancham let loose a Dark Pulse that ripped through the bubble as Primarina stood tall and the orb exploded, raining a set of complimentary black and blue sparkles of mist across the area.

"Finish!" Serena called, stretching her hand to the sky and taking a bow with the rest of her Pokémon. Her smile was dazzling, and much of the crowd seemed to think so as well. It was especially so with Lillie, who was clapping her hands furiously. Ash continued to watch his girlfriend, proud of who she'd become, and her determination.

"A splendidly breathtaking first performance! The rest will have quite a lot to live up to following that result!" Maika announced with enthusiasm. Serena was leaving the stage, and the next performer was coming on. In light of Serena's performance, however, the next performer seemed relatively dull by comparison, Ash noted, and he was sure that the others with him seemed to feel the same. In fact, for the next few participants, all of it seemed rather dull and uninspired for the most part. Only Maka stepped in in order to spice things up a bit.

"Okay, Aki, Ula, let's make fire into snow! It'll be a great shot for everyone to see!" Maka had cheered with much enthusiasm. Ash found himself still raptly paying attention to the younger girl's performance, interested to see what she'd pull off.

Like always, Maka served to surprise him. For someone who continually claimed that she would one day catch up to and surpass Serena, Ash knew he wasn't alone in thinking that time had already come. Perhaps she wasn't as perfect and energetic as some would think, but what Maka lacked in that, she more than made up for in creativity. Right away, Ash watched as she ordered a set of Revelation Dances. Ula sprung into the air, dancing with a vigorous flamenco beat that sent fire out with every flap of her wings. That same fire was soon taken over by Aki's psychic powers, broken apart and falling slowly.

"It really is like snow," Clemont commented at the sight of it. Ash was entranced by Maka's expert performance, dancing around and switching into different grooves. She then sent Ula dancing into the air with her beautiful and robust dance moves, a course of Air Cutters flying out. Aki met them head on with her own, and the different clear rotors of air met together, sparkling down with the falling flames. Looking over at the judges, Ash could see how impressed Kiawe was, and even Kukui looked very intrigued. For someone who didn't have the easiest time of turning her abilities into snow (owing to her lack of an Ice type, naturally), Maka was a genius at her level of adaptation. In no time at all, her themed performance finished, and the freestyle began, only unlike most before her, she didn't switch out just one of her Pokémon, but both of them.

"Let's shake things up!" Maka called. She ended up doing just that. Pikachu seemed to delight in her next performance, with Mele creating beautiful streams of electricity that covered the stage. Ponpon, like before, vanished and reappeared, dancing through the electricity streams as they converged. It then used its fan-like claws to draw the electricity into an orb and send it back to Mele. It was almost like some random scene, picked out from a movie, just how Maka liked it, with all three having an active and energetic part to play. Needless to say, while the crowd cheered for Serena's performance, they seemed to get into the enjoyment of Maka's and how simply different it was until finally they used a combination of Air Cutter, and the following electricity to utterly rip away the rotors and bring an end to the performance.

"That's a wrap!" Maka called, the crowd cheering for her, too, like they did for most performances. It was truly a festival; a joining of unions between the performers and the audience, each one making the utmost use of the stage. That was exemplified no better than by the woman that was taking the stage now, her Pokémon already out and looking confident once Maka had retreated off of it.

"Let's show these little girls what a woman's dance can do!" Jessie proclaimed loudly as she finished sauntering on to the stage with Wobbuffet and Gourgeist at her side. To Ash's immense surprise, the woman was extremely well loved amidst the crowd, possibly because of her show of confidence, or her own performance in the Course Portion. At the very least, she had one very vocal fan in James, who seemed to be somewhere in the crowd with a box of concessions.

"Go, Jessilie! Show them what you mean!"

"Oh, I will! Gourgeist, Wobbuffet, let's begin!" Jessie called. Ash arched an eyebrow, scooting a little forward on the seat to see what Jessie would pull off for her themed performance. Wobbuffet waddled into the middle of the stage with a giant grin, stretching his blue arms high into the air. Then Jessie grabbed the hem of her dress and began to dance, flicking the material back and forth until she reached Wobbuffet.

"What tremendous leg strength…" Clemont commented. Of course, all of their little family was well aware of Jessie's identity, but even Ash had to admit surprise at how high up Jessie was able to jump. She landed above Wobbuffet and her heels touched down on to the surface of Wobbuffet's head, suddenly bouncing up, like he was a spring board.

"Wobba! Wobba! Wobbuffet!" Wobbuffet cried with each and every bounce. He was also doing some twirling, though not at the speed Jessie was going through the air. Then Ash noticed what she was doing: the woman was pulling what looked like petals out of her dress, tossing them in the air as Gourgeist twirled this way and that around the stage underneath the softly falling petals.

"Now, dear Gourgeist, throw your Leech Seed into the air!" Jessie cried, twisting her body so her bottom landed on Wobbuffet and shot her sky high. Gourgeist, as expected, listened to her sister-trainer. She didn't stop spinning, but fired the little seeds that made up her attack, straight towards the sky. "Now it's time for an up high Seed Bomb and Shadow Ball parade, featuring me!"

"Gourgeist!" the Pumpkin Pokémon agreed, soaring upwards. She began to spin in midair while Wobbuffet stepped a little back, grabbing ahold of Jessie and tossing her into the air, instead of letting her bounce. When Gourgeist reached her zenith, she began to spray out the two ordered attacks, alternating between each of them, first a green seed and then a crackling set of shadowy orbs. They struck on to the Leech Seed and exploded in green and purple. The combination of attacks collided with one another, making soft, popping explosions that rained their glitter down on the stage. That same glitter actually seemed to accumulate on the bottom of the stage, as though the snow was piling.

"Take me into the air, Gourgeist! The ultimate spotlight!" Jessie practically sang out. Gourgeist spiraled back downward, planting a Leech Seed that began to take both Wobbuffet and Jessie upwards, like they were on twisted and gnarly platforms as they spun around like the divas they all were. "Now Dark Pulse and Shadow Ball! Wobbuffet, use Mirror Coat!"

"Wobba wobb!" Wobbuffet agreed, jumping high from his podium as Gourgeist spun through the air, a little trail of dark particles hanging around her figure before she sent the Shadow Ball at Wobbuffet. He glowed, taking the attack, and then allowed it to fire off in a cutting beam that multiplied the flakes now floating downward as the plants retracted, bringing Jessie back down to ground level.

"Theme performance finished!" The crowd applauded and cheered while Ash sat back. He wasn't sure how well she'd accomplished the snow aspect, other than the glitter which was now dispersing at her feet, though he had no doubt as to her prowess in the next area, switching out Wobbuffet for her lumbering and towering Bewear. "Let's spin with Hidden Power, Bewear!"

"Beeeee!" Bewear squealed out in joy. Gourgeist joined them on the stage and all three began to spin faster and faster. Next to Ash, Bonnie could no longer follow and all but passed out in her seat while from both Gourgeist and Bewear, different colored orbs were flying, black and silver. It was an impressive array, framing Jessie's figure, as usual. They all collided, exploding into fireworks that dazzled the audience around them. From behind, he could practically feel Dawn and May's nodding.

"Now, let's dance, my beautiful, adorable Pokémon!" Jessie cried, clearly loving the attention she was getting. Bewear joined arms with Gourgeist's tendrils as the two began to dance in a circle, with Jessie in the middle, doing her own swift steps. "A lone princess, trapped and alone! Who will save this ravishing beauty from the darkness?"

"Wear!" Bewear cried as she let go of Gourgeist, and then hit Jessie. Some of the audience winced, and Ash did, too, yet he knew she hadn't messed up at all. It was part of a plan that knocked her into the air. Her Pokémon were working without direct commands, as well, with Gourgeist's Leech Seed implanting within the ground, in order to sprout up. Suddenly, the plants moved and began holding Jessie in thrall and in place. It made her appear trapped, and would have been worrisome to the audience (which it was) had she not placed a hand to her forehead overdramatically.

"Oh, what cruel fate is this, to be trapped! Will no one come and save this beautiful princess?" she bemoaned herself. Of course, she obviously had a plan, for Bewear was running forward and sweeping her leg out, slicing through the vines. They collapsed and Jessie fell forward. "Now for the finale, Seed Bomb!"

Just like that, Gourgeist twirled through the air, firing off the glorious green seeds that nevertheless exploded into a multitude of fireworks. Meanwhile, Bewear caught Jessie and proceeded to hold her high, just as Gourgeist finished and twirled into position to be held above Jessie. The fireworks exploded around them, framing them all there as the performance finished. The awed crowd erupted into cheers and Ash shook his head. He still thought Serena's was better, but Jessie, like always, had retained full mastery of the stage.

More interesting, however, was the boy that was up next: Keoni.

At his side were his Bruxish and Ninetales, both he and his Pokémon looking stoic, accentuated by the long sleeves the boy wore on his performance outfit. It was completely opposite and counter to the overconfident manner that he used to carry himself with, and Ash was found scooting forward. Bonnie had recovered, making some disparaging remarks about the boy that led to confusion in the row behind them, but Ash blocked all of that out. He looked down, and Keoni looked up. They met eyes, and Ash could see that the challenge had disappeared. He was no longer pursuing Serena, at least not as an object of affection, but as that of a rival. It made him wonder what had happened to make him do so, to switch that sort of view. Keoni soon looked away, rubbing down on his long sleeves and continuing on with his rather expressionless face.

"Time to perform!" Keoni called out, throwing a hand wide. Unlike Serena's smiling, Jessie's show stealing and Maka's enthusiasm, Keoni was rather stiff in himself. It certainly set him apart from the rest of the performers, though it did recall to Ash's mind Miss Akela's words all those months ago. He was a boy that was technically impressive, but ultimately lacked the passion and depth that others, even the vain Jessie, had. "Ninetales, Ice Shard!"

"Kyuuuu!" Ninetales cried out, her tails, like wispy clouds of snow on their own, flicking outward, sending the sharp daggers of ice hurtling out into the air. Bruxish's command came next, the rather odd-looking fish's teeth elongating with a powerful pink glow as it snapped forward. The ice shattered to pieces as it closed its jaws around it, but hung in the air from the strike, like said snow was suspended.

"Aurora Beam, and use Aqua Jet," Keoni called. Ash finally took his attention away from the Pokémon's performance to watch the boy. He was dancing, as well, but it didn't look as impressive as when Serena and the others danced, like until recently, he hadn't been dancing with anyone but himself. Ninetales fired the rainbow beam, colliding with the ice in the air as it began to fall. Meanwhile, Bruxish soared through with Aqua Jet, like it was creating a harrowing gale that blew the ice around the area. It made it similar to a blizzard in a way. "Make it stop with Confusion."

"Shishi!" Bruxish called, eyes glowing blue as the whirling blizzard stopped from the move, and once again hung in the air. Keoni then began to tap dance, it seemed, while Ninetales pranced around him, almost in a ghostly presence. Likewise, Bruxish traveled through the area with Aqua Jet, the ice accumulating and sparkling on its figure.

"Time to end this performance!" Keoni shouted and he brought his wrists up, his sleeves riding up to reveal what lay underneath. Ash's eyes widened, and Clemont practically flew out of his chair.

"Where did he get a Z-Ring from? !" the inventor asked in surprise. Ash could only shake his head as the boy's arms continued to cross, and Ninetales glowed an icy color. Suddenly, she was lifted on a pillar of ice, a coalescing energy forming around her before firing out, right for Keoni and Bruxish. He appeared to be giving a command for it just as the attack, something called "Sub-Zero Slammer" struck home. It encased Keoni and Bruxish, both, in ice…for all of a second. The ice shattered outward.

"Aqua Tail!" yelled Keoni's voice as Bruxish swept through the ice, breaking it into countless pieces of diamond dust that glittered in the air before Keoni lowered himself into a bow. It was a worthy performance, if still perfunctory. He soon swapped Ninetales for what looked like Minior. However, Ash had to admit he wasn't paying attention to Keoni's follow-up performance. He was looking more at the judges that were all gathered there.

While Serena's Z-Move incorporation hadn't been all that surprising, even if he hadn't seen her practice with them, Keoni's just seemed to have come out of nowhere, making Ash sit back and wonder just what had happened to Keoni in that month since Serena had slapped him. Some of the judges must have wondered, too. Especially Kiawe. The captain was sitting with folded arms and an almost leering expression, while next to him, Kukui was clapping in time with Keoni's festive dancing. Akela also looked a little skeptical, her eyes staring straight ahead with a thin line for lips. Regardless of their own opinions, though, Ash had to admit in the final moments that the combination of Confusion and Ancient Power was an impressive one. Keoni knew how to please a crowd in an almost analytical fashion.

Ash folded his arms, twisting his own lips in thought as Keoni walked off the stage, sparing no one else a glance after his performance had finished. There were still a few more performances left, but Ash found himself on edge, wondering just which eight would be proceeding to the Battle Portion that started tomorrow. It was simply a waiting game…waiting and wondering about the boy that had picked a fight with him from the moment they met. If he could just speak with him…

"The performances are finished, and now the judges will confer to discuss the eight that will be moving on!" Maika called out. Ash looked up at the screen that was there, showing the sixteen portraits of the participants gunning for the position of the Ali'i ka Leilani. His hands folded together as he stared at them, looking at each one with sharp intent. The whole world felt like it had vanished around him while he stared at it, reading each of them. He had watched their performances, seen who they were through that alone, and he wasn't even participating. It made his hands shake with excitement, enough for Pikachu to look up at him.

"Can't wait," he breathed out, only enough for himself and his best friend in his lap to hear. Movement caught his eye and Ash saw the sixteen competitors all move back onto the stage for the announcement of who would be reaching what were essentially the quarterfinals of the Hope Leilani.

"The judges have deliberated, and have now decided the eight moving on, along with the randomized matchups for tomorrow's morning matches!" Maika announced, drawing everyone's attentions to the screens. "First up will be Jessilie against Hani! Serena against Iwalani! Keoni against Ahe! And the final matchup for the morning will be Leko against Maka! But for today, that's it everyone! We'll see you tomorrow for some intense rounds of the Battle Portion!"

"They both made it!" Lillie gasped out, like she'd been holding her breath this whole time. Of course, the statement could have applied to any number of them, but Ash was pretty sure she was referring to Serena and Maka (or maybe Jessie…okay, he wasn't as sure as he thought).

"Serena's pretty good, huh?" Dawn asked, clearly gorging on the popcorn with May, now that the tension wasn't so high. "I mean, we've never seen her in her own element, but I guess there was no need to worry."

"Let's drag her off to Hoenn for some contests," May agreed, still greedily eating. Ash stood, as were a lot of the crowd. Ash didn't pay any attention to them, however, Pikachu scampering up his shoulder as they turned to the exit. No one called after him, likely guessing where he was going to be heading in the first place.

Ash pushed through the crowd that was quickly glutting and swarming about the area in an effort to leave the stadium. Some were staying behind as the stage was swapped out for a battlefield. Obviously, the preliminaries were about to take place, and as much as Ash really wanted to watch, he also wanted to show support to the person who mattered the most. Thankfully, he was able to slip through the crowd easily enough and break into the halls that led towards the changing rooms. The halls were less packed, especially since they were wider than the stadium itself was, and he was able to pick up speed, aiming for the place they had left Serena at in the first place, earlier that very morning.

Before he had reached the door, it opened, and Ash pulled to a stop. He wasn't surprised that he was now face to face with Keoni. They both continued to look at each other, neither saying a word, even as numerous people passed around them. Finally, Ash decided to extend the olive branch between them.

"Your performance was good," he said, though he had to admit that he felt a tightness in his throat as he said so. Keoni blinked, but after a moment he responded.

"Thank you," he answered. Once more there was silence and Ash looked down, noticing that the boy's Z-Ring was now covered up once again by his jacket for walking outside; the very same reason it hadn't been noticed during the banquet the night prior. There was still no idea what to say in the moment, for either of them. "So, is the rumor true?"

"What rumor?" Ash asked, not sure of what Keoni was talking about explicitly. The boy raised his wrist up, showing off the gleaming Z-Ring, and Ash noticed it was in the style of those made on Ula'ula.

"The rumor that's been going around, about some big event following the League," he spoke. "I heard about it from the island's Kahuna when he gave me this."

"You did some trials, then?" Ash asked, choosing not to answer about the upcoming battle. The less people involved, the better. Rather, the less involved that didn't know the battle plan, the better. They really couldn't afford to screw things up in that case. Keoni shook his head.

"I…went to work at Po Town," Keoni admitted, reaching up to scratch his cheek. He almost looked embarrassed to even speak about it. Ash wasn't sure if he should even ask the boy about that, considering his overall reluctance regarding the subject. "I was going to just train at home, but then there were…rumors…about Po Town suddenly being empty and in need of construction work. My father's company picked it up and I decided to help out. Just felt right. For whatever reason, the Kahuna there wouldn't even let me in unless I battled him."

"Nanu  _is_  weird, I guess," Ash admitted, remembering the most aloof Kahuna he'd met in the entire region. "So, you beat him and got a Z-Ring?"

"No, he beat me with a single move," was Keoni's response, but he said no more. Ash just filled in the blanks on his own; Nanu was really something unto himself. At least Keoni's change in attitude was starting to make some sense: he'd put work towards something that wasn't for himself. For the first time, his elegance and beauty hadn't meant a thing, and here he was, forcing himself to acknowledge that…well, somewhat at least. "Doesn't matter. And regarding our earlier-"

"Oh. Ash," Serena spoke, sounding surprised that he was there as she emerged from the same door. Ash and Pikachu both smiled at her as she hitched her bag with her things back up. It took a moment for her to notice that Keoni was standing right there. The boy just began to turn away. "Keoni-"

"Good performance today," he called out with a wave. "But if we meet in the future rounds, I won't go easy. That's my promise as your rival!"

"Oh, okay," Serena spoke, blinking just a little in surprise. Soon after, Keoni had faded into the crowd, and the honey blonde had looked at him with an inquiring expression. "What was all that about?"

"Don't know," Ash laughed out, rubbing the back of his head. "But…I think Keoni's changed, like maybe what we said to him on Blush Mountain hit home or something."

"Hmmm…" Serena mused out thoughtfully, tapping her chin as she watched the boy's back. In the end, she just shrugged with a light laugh on the lips. "Oh well, I'm sure when we meet again in battle, things will be different."

"For sure!" Ash called out, leaning forward to give her a kiss before grabbing her hand. "Now, let's go! I'm sure the others are all waiting to celebrate moving on with you, and I'm sure you want lots of rest for tomorrow!" Not waiting for her response, he dragged her off again, thinking about the boy whose attitude had changed and evolved. Perhaps Alola really was a place for that after all, and he couldn't be more grateful.

* * *

"The second day of the Hope Leilani has begun and we're already in the middle of the action on the stage! Such fervor! Such intensity! As a purveyor of battles, Harry, how are you feeling about this special spice of Alolan culture?" Maika asked for the crowd, as Serena watched the battle that was taking place on the screen, from the waiting room. Her other five fellow competitors were also there as well, watching intently. Maka was busy framing the whole thing carefully.

"It's definitely a different experience!" Kalas called out. The two had now taken to commentating together that the battles had started, instead of just Maika running the show. It certainly made for a different experience from the day before, Serena noted. "I particularly like the way that the rules seem to shift for every round in the sense that while this seems to be a single battle, the next round is a double before reverting to a final single battle. It makes the participants keep on their toes!"

"That it does, and no trainer is keeping the other on their toes more than Jessilie, showing a masterful command over the battlefield at this moment in time!" Maika announced. Serena nodded, continuing to watch the battle on the screen, one between Gourgeist and what looked like an Electabuzz.

The honey blonde sat back, crossing her legs in her dress. She wondered how much more Jessie had been training since the day before, or since they had last separated. For someone so incredibly vain and adoring of the spotlight, she knew how to make the judges impressed with her moves. Maybe it was because she was so used to blasting them off on an almost consistent basis, but Serena had never noticed how strong Team Rocket could be when simply given the chance. It made her almost wish she'd spent an extra hour training last night instead of the lovely dinner with her friends.

_But everything should come in moderation,_  Serena noted to herself. It was all that pushing too hard that had led to her breaking her view about what was needed, and almost breaking herself. Realizing that, she nodded again and sat back to watch the remainder of the battle.

"Now, for a lovely Dark Pulse!" Jessie was cheering on the screen, flicking her hair to the crowd's cheering. She had certainly earned her niche for her flair of the dramatic, and it actually made Serena excited to face off against her sooner than later, she hoped. Gourgeist fired off her swirling dark energy in the shape of an R on the ground, leaving it scorched on the stage before it slammed into Electabuzz.

"Use Thunder Punch!" the girl on the stage cried. Serena felt bad for not remembering her name, but continued to watch on in rapt fascination to everything taking place. Electabuzz ran forward with its sparking fist aimed right for Gourgeist, striking right upon its pumpkin face and driving it backwards. Not that Jessie worried too much.

"Use a glorious Leech Seed!" Electabuzz's close range ended up leading it to being wrapped right up in the great roots that sprung from the ground and enclosed it. Serena looked away, already knowing the end result of the battle that was going to take place. Even Maka stopped watching, placing her sketchpad down and sighing. Keoni said nothing, though his eyes flicked over to the sighing filmmaker.

"And Jessilie has dominated the battle!" Maika called to the crowd who were cheering. Serena stood, as did her opponent, Iwalani. They didn't need to hear any more about Jessie passing on to the semifinals with her laughter, as they made their way to the hallways, splitting down separate corridors. Serena looked to her opponent, watching the girl's back as it retreated, white and blue hair bouncing with every step. She hoped that she could make this just as quick as Jessie, but didn't worry about it all that much, especially as she passed by Jessie's former opponent.

"Okay, Sandshrew, let's win this round," she whispered to the pokeball clasped in her hand. The crowd was cheering for the next round of the quarterfinals and Serena walked up on to the stage. Her ears were pricked for the sounds of her friends and she thought she heard them behind her, giving away their location, but she continued walking forward until she stood in the trainer's box.

"Now it's time for the second battle of the quarterfinals! Who will win? Serena? Or Iwalani? We're about to find out! Remember, the first to hit seven flowers is the winner!" There was a loud chime, the giant screens displaying both of the girls' faces and the seven rotating, transparent flowers. Another chime soon sounded, indicating for the battle to begin. Serena tossed her pokeball out, calling forth Sandshrew, as her opponent called out a Wingull.

"Sandshrew, use Powder Snow!" Serena called out, flashing a brilliant smile across to her opponent. Iwalani looked surprised, her hair flicking out, but smiled back. Sandshrew reared back and then blew the freezing breath down upon the stage, instead of at the Wingull beyond his view. At the same time, Iwalani ordered a Mist to be used. In seconds, Wingull's wings seemed to have whipped up a soft fog that covered the seagull. "Now, use Rapid Spin over the ice!"

"Shrew!" Sandshrew squeaked out, beginning to spin like a top and placing himself on the ice. He made a beeline right for Wingull, the ice that was on the ground puffing up with little sparkles from the combination. Two chimes were heard, but Serena wasn't focusing on her score. That wasn't the most important thing.

"Now, Ice Ball!"

"Dodge it!" Iwalani cried, throwing both fists into the air like she was some sort of cheerleader. Sandshrew continued to spin, firing off his Ice Balls in every direction that he could possibly reach. From the rotation, the sneezing balls of ice began to whip around, as if in a whirling vortex. Wingull pulled back a little. "Now, Supersonic!"

"Wing wing!" Wingull acquiesced, opening its beak to fire the sound waves. It didn't account for the multitude of Ice Balls in the air that soon slammed around into Wingull. The score changed again, granting Serena another point while taking one off of Iwalani's. The cyclone of whirling Ice Balls finally came to an end, but Serena decided to press her momentum with Sandshrew, proud of how far the mouse had come with her.

"Now, leap up into a Metal Claw and slice through your attack!" Serena ordered, twirling in place with her smile. The crowd roared appreciatively over her commands. Sandshrew bounced upward, coming out of his spin with his glowing, metallic claws that sliced through with glee. The frozen orbs all broke apart in a glittering sheen before the attack eventually made contact with Wingull, sending it flying backwards. It recovered quickly enough.

"Water Gun!" Wingull fired in seconds, slamming the stream of liquid into Sandshrew and driving him towards the ground. Points were awarded to both of them, the battle moving even quicker than one would have expected. "Now, Air Slash!"

"Block it with Metal Claw!" Serena called out, throwing her hand to the side, just like Ash always would. Wingull flapped its wings, a large orb of compressed air forming at its tips before basting outward. Sandshrew was ready for it, stepping forward and slicing downward. The air exploded, slight ribbons flowing around Sandshrew's body as he gave a small jump of joy into the air. "Now, Rapid Spin!"

"Stop it with Water Gun!" Both Pokémon acted on an instant, but Sandshrew had started just a little earlier, cutting along the ice and springing upwards towards the sky, while still spinning wildly. The Water Gun slammed into Sandshrew, slowing the rotations somewhat, but he wasn't backing down, filled with just as much determination as ever. There was a chime heard, and Serena noticed that Iwalani had grabbed a point against her. It didn't last much longer, as despite the slowing, Sandshrew slammed into Wingull, almost driving the seagull to the ground. He spun out and landed calmly on the ground, the sparkles of the ice floating upwards.

"What an intense battle! Serena retains the very sharp edge at the moment, having already earned six flowers due to her mastery with Sandshrew. Iwalani, however, is falling behind at two flowers, but she's not giving up!" Maika commented to the crowd, all of their excitement ratcheting up with cheers.

"Let's protect ourselves and use Mist!" Wingull snapped its wings out, and this time, instead of just obscuring the bird, the fog covered the entire battlefield, making it almost impossible to see just what was going on at that moment. Sandshrew turned from side to side as trainer and Pokémon were cut off from seeing each other. However, Serena didn't allow herself to worry. Her eyes flicked over to the judge's table, noticing Akela there, eyebrows heightened.

"No worries, Sandshrew. Rapid Spin! Get to the center of the field!" Serena could have sworn that she also heard a call for a Water Gun, but they didn't know where it would be coming from. That suited her just fine, as she listened for the sound of Sandshrew beginning to spin and rotate in place, like a perpetual spinning top. "Now, use Powder Snow as you spin!"

"Shreeeew!" Sandshrew called out, sending the snow into the air. Serena grinned. The mist began to freeze, turning into sparkling snow. At the same time, Wingull had blasted out its Water Gun, the water freezing up from the attack, with the ice traveling up the stream until completely encasing the seagull's beak. This was only made obvious by the freezing of the mist clearing the air. A loud bell dinged out and the crowd roared into approval.

"And the battle is over! Serena has earned all seven flowers, meaning that she has won and is moving on to the semifinals!" Maika called to the roaring crowd. Serena grinned and ran forward as Sandshrew leapt into her arms.

"Great job, Sandshrew! You've come so far!" Serena said, whirling around on the stage with her precious Pokémon in her arms. She turned and looked over to Iwalani, the girl looking disappointed as she called back Wingull. However, when she looked up, their gazes met and Serena could see that underneath the disappointment was the drive to work even harder. It wasn't quite her goal, but the start of a smile, and that was enough. Iwalani nodded to her, as if thanking her for the experience, and she grinned back. "Let's go back to the waiting room."

"Sand!" Sandshrew agreed wholeheartedly, the duo leaving the stage quickly. As they proceeded back, Serena stopped in the hallway, noticing Keoni approaching. All too quickly, her rival about to pass them by.

"Good luck," she said.

"And you, good job," he said, still not smirking. Whether it was a serious mode, or the fact that maybe he stopped considering his skills so high, Serena wasn't sure (even after hearing what Ash had told her). What she did know was that Keoni was still different, now. Of course, he was still more than technically impressive, considering that by the time she'd even gotten back to the room where Maka was stretching with Ponpon, the battle looked to be half over. Granting, while Keoni had the lead, it wasn't quite the same kind of gulf that either Serena or Jessie had managed to make with their own opponents, though it could have easily been by design, knowing Keoni.

Either way, watching his Minior act with perfect precision in the moment was actually quite captivating. He had a brilliant knowledge of when to act and what to use, which was the only reason Serena suspected that Keoni had wanted the points to get so close to one another, rather than being one-sided. Not that it mattered in the end: a well-placed Ancient Power ended the battle in Keoni's favor, leaving only one more battle to take place that morning. It made Serena wonder just who she'd be facing in the semifinals and beyond.

_It doesn't matter,_  she assured herself, watching but not really paying attention as Maka's battle began. She'd seen the girl enough to know just how far she'd come and her capabilities in pulling it all off.  _No matter who I'm up against, I can smile. Because each one of them can impart a smile to someone else, even me._

That gave Serena comfort, even as the bell dinged. She'd been in her head far longer than she thought she would be, and when she looked up, the result was an obvious win for Maka. On top of that, Maika seemed to be making another announcement, stating that the matchups for the semifinals would be announced after a quick lunch break. The crowd almost seemed disappointed at that, but Serena relished the chance for a break and some food, especially when Maka returned.

"Did you see it? !" Maka cried out, bounding into the room. Jessie, who was at the mirror (looking at herself, no doubt), ignored it, while Keoni watched the energetic girl for just a moment, reading a book carefully (except for the fact he wasn't turning any pages). "Ponpon was amazing!"

"Ricoco!" Ponpon agreed, sweeping low into a bow.

"Yes, you're very skilled, Maka," Serena said with a smile in her friend's direction. There was a knock at the door, and someone came into the room carrying a cart filled with food for both the trainers and Pokémon alike. With only the four of them left (due to the eliminated contestants having changed and left), it seemed a little excessive, but Sandshrew appeared to appreciate the snack. The man with the cart soon backed out, leaving the four familiar semifinalists alone in the room.

"Well, whatever happens, good luck to everyone!" Maka called out, pumping her fists. Jessie scoffed, flicking her coiffed hair, but otherwise said nothing. The black-haired girl stepped closer to Keoni, holding a hand out. "How about you?"

"Sure," Keoni said, smiling softly. He reached his own hand out and shook it. He looked her over appreciatively, though when Maka frowned at him, he let go and shrugged. Clearly not all aspects of him had changed.

"Win or lose, me and my film crew are still gonna be the best ever! No one greater!" Maka called out. Serena laughed out while Jessie looked a little intrigued, no doubt remembering Maka's old offer to cast her in her film. Keoni looked interested, as well, though he had much better success at hiding it than their vain competitor. It hardly mattered a moment later, as more chimes sounded out.

"The break is over and it's time to move on to the semifinals of the Hope Leilani! Who will be the one break through and move to the ultimate battle for the spot of the Ali'i ka Leilani? !" Maika called. The four pictures all appeared on the screen before swirling around rapidly. "We're about to find out, with this first semifinal double battle being…

"Serena against Keoni!"

Serena blinked, surprised. She turned her head, looking to the boy. He seemed just as surprised, almost as if he'd hoped to face her in the finals. It left the obvious matchup of Maka and Jessie for later, too. Serena stood, calling Sandshrew back while Keoni followed suit in his own movements. Both remained silent, but moved towards the door to the hallways in tandem. Jessie pursed her lips and said nothing for a moment.

"Good luck, Serena," Maka whispered out. When Jessie decided to speak, just as they'd reached the door, it was much louder.

"You better not lose! I want to defeat you, myself, to win the whole thing," she scoffed out. Serena took them as positive sentiments and she and Keoni proceeded into the hallway. They paused for a moment at the split.

"Whatever happens, no hard feelings," Serena said, bowing her head a bit. Keoni didn't say anything for a second, and she began to hear his feet walking off.

"I'm sorry," he said, but just seemed to leave it at that. Serena whipped around, seeing him still walking ahead, back retreating with his hands shoved into his pockets. "Now, don't hold back, Serena. You're a beautifully stunning person, so I don't want you to disappoint. I want to see how far you've taken each other. I  _need_  to see that."

That was all Keoni said before any other words would have faded away from distance. Serena just smiled. She was more than ready to show how far she had come with her Pokémon, and the way her friends had inspired her. Thinking of Ash, Lillie, Clemont, Bonnie and all the other people she'd met on her journey, she spun around and walked forward down the hall, out towards the stadium for her final battle with Keoni to begin at long last.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: So, the Hope Leilani continues, and we get a slight insight as to what happened to Keoni. Of course, he's still the same slightly lecherous boy we all knew, but that slap really did a number on his attitude! Now Serena just has to prove that sticking with Ash was always the right choice to him (pssh, like there's any other) …and I'm making this sound cornier than it should. Anyway, I hope the performances, the ones that I described in detail and not, were fulfilling. The battles, of course, weren't meant to be, since they weren't any big ones, but the next chapters will see the conclusion of this Hope Leilani, and I think should provide much better battles. Will Serena succeed? Or will Keoni defeat her? Guess you'll see next time!
> 
> The Hope Leilani is almost at its end, and I hope you'll continue to enjoy it in full. Until then, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	16. An Apology

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah…the end of Ceremonies. It's a sweet, sweet feeling. Hopefully this final chapter of those wonderful (read: I hated them) things is enjoyable! That said, time for Chapter 16!

Chapter 16

An Apology

"Here we stand, the final precipice before we reach the summit of the Hope Leilani," Maika's voice echoed across the stadium. The crowd was whipping themselves into a frenzy as Serena walked forward to the stage that was set for her and Keoni. She stopped in the trainer box, waiting for the battle that had been building for them to begin. "Harry, being relatively unaware of the state and opinions of the Leilani Ceremonies, what's your own opinion and guesses on who may make it to the finals?"

"Well, I've honestly no idea!" Kalas laughed out good-naturedly. "I'm well aware of Miss Serena's capabilities, but never seen her in an event quite like this. And with Keoni being an unknown to myself, it's hard to tell."

"That's a fair enough assessment," Maika concluded. There was a chime representing the appearance of both herself and Keoni on the screens above the stadium. The judges, meanwhile, were in the middle of the field's side to see their entire battle. "That said, it's time to begin the first semifinal battle, Serena versus Keoni! This is a double battle, each trainer allowed two Pokémon! However, the rules still remain the same: seven flowers for victory! Let's see a beautiful and fantastic battle!"

"Ninetales, Lord Meowth, it's time!" Keoni called to his Pokémon, tossing their capture devices out to have them emerge. Serena watched them carefully, especially as Keoni looked at her. There were words in his eyes, ones he wanted to say, but needed a battle to figure out how to make them flow. It made Serena turn her head back a little, realizing how connected the three of them were; how it tied into her dreams and Ash's as well. They were  _understanding_  each other. Now, Serena was ready to impart her feelings to the rival before her.

"Pancham, Sylveon, let's do this!" Serena said, emulating her rival in tossing the pokeballs out. Both Pancham and Sylveon hit the field, looking prepared as they hunkered down against their opponents. It was fitting: the two Pokémon they had first competed against each other with, now going head to head with each other on the same level. But Serena wasn't backing down; she had someone she wanted to meet in the final round, someone with who she now felt intertwined.

_Clang!_

"Lord Meowth, Fake Out!" Keoni snapped, not wasting his opening. Lord Meowth rushed forward, claws held to his sides as he reached Pancham and Sylveon, both, within seconds. His paws clapped together, the loud sound resounding through the stadium. Sylveon and Pancham flinched from it, giving Lord Meowth a chance to leap back. There was a chime, earning Keoni an easy flower.

"Sylveon, Pancham, I know you can do this! Use Swift and Dark Pulse, right away!" Serena ordered out, not willing to let Keoni get the upper hand on her. Ninetales was beginning to glow slightly from a command that must have been called in the flinching noise. Sylveon shook her head and her feelers whipped outward, sending golden stars in an arc through the air. Pancham, too, recovered, summoning the inky nexus of energy and blasting it out in its helix of darkness. The soaring beam joined with the stars, the celestial objects suddenly funneling around the attack as it made a beeline for Ninetales. The beautiful image quickly earned Serena a flower.

"Now!" Keoni said, snapping his fingers. Ninetales howled out, the white glow reaching its zenith. Serena frowned, realizing that he had ordered a Safeguard. It didn't stop the damage, but given the glowing luminescence of the attack, combined with Ninetales already sparkling fur, the impact of the strike simply made her look even more beautiful.

"Keoni is certainly gaining the early lead in this battle," Maika called out, like Serena wasn't already aware of it in the first place. "Two points to Serena's now zero, after losing a point from that."

"Now, Ninetales, Ice Shard, get the drop on them!" Keoni said. Serena wondered if he was even trying, for all of a moment. However, when she looked at him, she realized that he  _was_. He was acting with precision, wanting to prove something either to or for himself, goading her into truly giving her all.

So, she would.

"Pancham, quick and use Stone Edge to create stones right in front of you!" Serena called to him. The Playful Pokémon nodded, flipping forward and placing his hands on the ground. The stones shot out as Ninetales' fur began to glow, shards of clear, sharp ice forming and then flying out. "Now, use Arm Thrust to knock the ice back with the stones!"

"Pan pan!" Pancham called, landing on the ground and then jabbing forward with a glowing arm. It slammed into the stones, breaking them apart with the single hit, and sending them flying in any and all directions. The counter was successful. The stones flew out, slamming into the ice chunks hurtling through the air. They broke apart, glittering with the ice that shattered into fine glitter. Keoni actually started smirking, like this was what he wanted. It was time to tip the scales.

"A brilliant counter from Serena results in earning two flowers and lowering Keoni's by one! Turning the tables around!"

"Far from over, though. Now, we can really battle! Aurora Beam on Sylveon!" Keoni ordered, his body language suggesting that he was getting into the battle.

"Sylveon, Protect!" Serena called out. Sylveon pranced forward, getting between Pancham and Ninetales. The fox opened her mouth and let loose the rainbow beam that traveled through the air in a brilliant, seven-colored gleam. The crowd oohed at the sight of it. Sylveon crouched down, the blue shield emerging and rippling out like a disc.

"Now, Lord Meowth, Feint!" Serena grimaced, having not seen that coming. Lord Meowth appeared out of almost nowhere with an amused smirk. It purred as its glowing claws shot out, slamming into the shield and breaking it. The Aurora Beam struck, driving into Sylveon as Lord Meowth's claws did as well. Sylveon cried out.

"Pancham, Arm Thrust!" Serena called out. On the scoreboard, Serena's score had lowered yet again, granting Keoni two more points at the same time. She wasn't letting it stand there. Pancham dashed forward and he jumped, his fist sinking right into Lord Meowth's face and blasting him away, though it was only a short distance. "Sylveon, grab him with your feelers!"

"Ninetales, Ice Shard!" Keoni ordered. Serena watched him a moment; he looked excited now, like this was what it meant to actually compete in a Ceremony.  _This_  was the battle he had been waiting for, finally standing on the same stage. Sylveon's feelers snapped out, wrapping around Lord Meowth while Ninetales created the icy shards that shot out with incredible speed.

"Toss it!" Serena cried. Sylveon gave a shout and sent Lord Meowth flying outward, crashing into the path of the Ice Shard. They shattered, making the feline's body glow a sickly white, before it hit the ground. Once again, Serena earned a point, making Keoni lose one in the process. "Keep it up! Use Double Team! Pancham!"

"Sylvieeee!" Sylveon howled out and, suddenly, copies of her appeared all over the arena and in the air. Serena grinned over at Keoni, who nodded. He was acknowledging her now; not as someone who needed "help" or as an object of affection, or even anything else; he was now seeing her as nothing but a fellow competitor, one who really could be the Ali'i ka Leilani as Akela had described.

"Night Slash!" he called out. Lord Meowth rebounded, claws shining a bright purple as he leapt into the mess of clones. He slashed in a great flurry, slicing through the copies in the air. Then Pancham came hurtling through the air, arm glowing as he slammed on to Lord Meowth's face once more. The Dark type feline suddenly shot down, traveling through the clones until hitting the stage.

"Give us some room! Dazzling Gleam!" Keoni called. Pancham had barely landed when Ninetales body glowed with a dazzling array of colors, shooting out in a prismatic fashion as it consumed the stage. Sylveon and Pancham flew back when they were struck by the streaks of color, the former catching the latter with her feelers before the attack came to its end.

"Oh my! What a battle we've been witnessing! Serena and Keoni are tied at the moment, standing at three flowers each!" Maika said, the crowd clearly on the edge of their seat over the battle. Keoni began to chuckle and Serena spoke.

"You've changed," she said, speaking to him directly. He raised an eyebrow.

"So have you," he noted. She couldn't deny that; she was no longer standing, as Hapu had put it, on unsteady ground. She moved forward with purpose and conviction, that maybe she couldn't make Keoni smile in that moment, but that eventually he could do so. "To be honest, I thought of nothing but the day we'd meet again."

"Keoni…" Serena groaned out as their Pokémon all recovered from the current attacks they had all been launching. However, the chuckle he gave off following her groan was a genuine one, no condescension involved.

"Because, I needed to see you again. I acted like a brat… _was_  a brat," Keoni admitted. He looked up, past Serena, and she knew he was looking at Ash. "When you slapped me, rejected me for the words I said, it made me realize something: I could never be the Ali'i ka Leilani. Not as I was. How could I? Royalty…I believed it meant having everything you desired, obtained with a sense of elegance, and that included a sort of queen.

"I was in denial, though. That kind of person was you, everything you exhibited from the moment I saw you. You were my threat, so I wanted to make you mine. Partly because I was genuinely attracted to you, but really, it was because it would make you an object instead of an opponent." Serena blinked at Keoni's confession to all this. He chuckled. "You slapping me,  _his_  words to me…they made me realize…you were something I could never obtain, and therefore, could never be the Ali'i ka Leilani."

"But it isn't about that at all," Serena spoke clearly. "We may dance on the stage, and bring attention to ourselves, but it's not about us. Even Jessilie knows that; she's vain, I would know, but when she dances, she creates fans, and those fans are just happy to see her dance."

"I know that now, because I was in Po Town, and it was hard work," Keoni admitted, running a hand through his hair. "There, they were all… _people_. Just people. And thinking about myself didn't net them anything. Then, realizing my 'elegance' meant nothing against that Kahuna…well, I still don't know if I'm worthy of the title of the Ali'i ka Leilani, but it doesn't mean I'll stop here! I'm giving it my all! Dark Pulse!"

"Neither am I! That's what it means to have rivals and friends! You, too, Pancham: Dark Pulse!" Pancham and Lord Meowth both struck forward, sending their black spirals of energy at one another, connecting in a collision. Serena grinned, finally understanding Keoni and settling their paths for the battle. "Now, Sylveon, use Double Team, and create a cyclone using Fairy Wind!"

"Veon!" Sylveon cried out. Her copies appeared all over the area, covering the space as her feelers whipped outward powerfully. The pink wind surged, forming a vortex that then exploded upward. Lord Meowth's attack was ended and he was carried away on the cyclone, earning Serena the point.

"Aurora Beam!" Keoni said, his smile giving way to a smirk. It was more of his old attitude, but entirely different. Ninetales sent the rainbow-colored beam right for them, but Serena was on the move.

"Block it with Stone Edge, like you're making fortress!" Serena called. The crowd cheered out at the action picking up again, while Pancham slammed down with both hands. The rocks jutted up rapidly in multiple rows, impenetrable as the Aurora Beam slammed into it. The first row broke, but that was about it before it petered out, making Pancham's rocks shine brightly. Serena earned a point. Keoni lost a point. She was getting closer.

"Use Ice Shard, and help them with Night Slash!" Keoni called out, throwing his hand high. It almost looked like he was sweating. Both cat and fox bounded forward as Ninetales fired off the fast-shooting shards. Lord Meowth was right behind them, claws glowing purple as he added acceleration to the attack. The shards shot forward and slammed into the fortress, battering through it and destroying it completely, continuing on for her Pokémon. She was taking a gamble, but hoped it would pay off as Keoni had two flowers added to his score.

"Protect, now!" Serena called before her head swiveled to Pancham, who crouched in a ready position.

"Feint!" Serena snapped her eyes, the lids narrowing just a little. That was Pancham's signal. Sylveon created the pulsing blue shield as Lord Meowth approached said protection with a rather feral expression on his face. Then Pancham struck, slamming on the ground. Sylveon jumped back to avoid the stones that quickly surrounded Lord Meowth, encapsulating him completely.

"Now jump up and use Fairy Wind!" Serena cried. Sylveon did just that, leaping up to prance upon the rocks. Her feelers whipped downward, creating a gigantic gust of glittering wind. The rocks blasted out, sparkling in the glitter of the Fairy Wind as Lord Meowth was pressed downward.

"One more flower for the finals! Isn't this exciting? !" Maika called, sounding like she was practically strangling Kalas. Keoni whipped his hand out, not willing to lose the battle yet, not when they'd come this far. It was just the way that Serena wanted it to be.

"Combine them! Aurora Beam! Dark Pulse!" Keoni snapped out, bringing a fist slamming down. Serena saw the Z-Ring on his wrist, already thinking of a way to bring her points to the finish. Bright light erupted from Ninetales as she shot the rainbow forward with immense speed. Right with it was the swirling dark mess that collided with it, twisting and melding together. The light of the simultaneous Dazzling Gleam blinded them, and the attack struck home against both Sylveon and Pancham, bringing Keoni's points into a tie. "Finish it with a distracting Night Slash! Ninetales, Su-"

"Fairy Wind and Swift with one feeler each! Pancham, Dark Pulse right on Ninetales!" Serena called, throwing her hand to the air with a brilliant smile, fist clenching. Pancham acted right away, before Keoni could even raise his wrists to perform the Z-Move, sending the dark beam at the Fairy type standing in their way.

"Sylveeeeooooooon!" Sylveon cried. One feeler whipped out the pink wind while the other sent out her golden stars. They mixed and mingled, swirling around like a cosmic windstorm, and then falling to the stage like great meteors that exploded all over the place, hitting Lord Meowth and Ninetales both, colliding powerfully with the platform beneath them. There was a singular chime that echoed through the stadium as the attack ended, loudly proclaiming the end of the battle. Serena stopped, breathing in before slowly turning her head, her eyes widening.

WINNER: SERENA

"We…we beat him!" Serena said, feeling a tear escaping from her eyes. "We did it! We made the finals!" Sylveon and Pancham turned around, quickly leaping for her arms with joy. On the other side, Keoni was blinking, almost like he didn't expect the result. His gaze remained focused on the Z-Ring he'd never gotten to use, clearly surprised by her sudden intervention before he could. Then, he smiled, offering a chuckle as he thanked his Pokémon and returned them.

"The first finalist of the Hope Leilani has been decided! Serena is moving on to the finals!" Maika cheered while a strange gurgling sound came from the commentator's box. "Now, a moment as the stage is refurbished for the next semifinal battle!"

Serena breathed in with joy, hugging both of her Pokémon and returning them before making her way back to the hallway. She wanted to talk to Keoni. They had battled on an even level now, understood one another, moved past their grievances, and she just wanted one more chance to speak with him, hopefully with Ash there; the one who had changed both of them. As she ran along, Jessie was there, walking down the hallway. The two passed each other.

"You said nice words, twerpette, but it doesn't change things," Jessie said with a smirk. Serena almost smirked right back.

"I didn't think it would. Let's just meet…in the finals!" Jessie scoffed, as though that was natural, and she continued on. Serena picked up her pace for the dressing room, breaking into it to see…Keoni wasn't there. Nor was his bag. It looked like he had completely packed up and left. That made her frown as sounds came from the television in the room. She quickly walked forward, finding the room so incredibly empty but for the couch near the screen.

"Now we're here and ready for the second semifinal match! Maka versus Jessilie! Who will proceed to face Serena in the finals for the title of the Ali'i ka Leilani? !" Maika was calling. On the television, Serena could see the little sidebars that showed Jessie and Maka with their transparent flowers. Despite her disappointment at Keoni's vanishing, Serena still watched the screen as the two combatants called their Pokémon to the stage: Ula and Mele for Maka, Gourgeist and Meowth for Jessie. Serena could admit surprise at seeing the talkative feline on the stage, acting like a somewhat normal Meowth.

"All right, Mele, Helping Hand!" Maka cheered, much to the crowd's enthusiasm, given the whole room was shaking. Attention seemed to be split as Mele raised his pompoms high and sent yellow energy channeling out into Ula. Serena turned away, moving to get changed from her dress into her regular traveling clothes. A chime from the screen indicated Maka's success in earning a point.

"Gourgeist, let's show this girl how a true actress behaves!" Serena shook her head, knowing that Maka would either be interested or disgusted in that kind of comment coming from Jessie. Regardless of what she was, it didn't show on the screen, while Jessie called for a gatling of Seed Bomb. Serena raised her dress off of her figure, standing alone in the room with her undergarments. Gourgeist was on the move, spraying great large seeds in every which direction towards the pair of Oricorio. "Now, Meowth, Fury Swipes!"

"Meeeeowth!" Meowth said in a most unconvincing impression of his species. Regardless of all that, Meowth was flitting through the seeds with a nasty expression. Though, from Serena's quick glance, he seemed to actually be having fun. He reached the edge of the colliding seeds and his claws swiped out, the slashes actually visible and clear cut. The judges must have liked it, especially with the way the Seed Bomb exploded into green sparks from the attack, because Jessie automatically earned two points.

"Mele, use your Air Cutter, Ula, get ready!" Maka said. Her excitement hadn't faded, despite the initial setback, and Serena turned to pulling her skirt on herself. She was halfway to putting her blouse on when Mele sent the visibly clear rotors of air sailing out. Jessie seemed to countermand the order with a firing Shadow Ball. Gourgeist flew back, forming one and firing it off. Meowth leapt upwards, slicing down the center. It split the orb into multiple ones of pulsating shadows that flew forward and met the Air Cutter in midair. They exploded, silver and purple sparks of diamonds falling downward. A point was earned on both sides, keeping Jessie ahead. Not that Serena was surprised; Maka was a capable opponent, but no one could overtake the stage and make people invested in her vanity like Jessie could.

"Steel Wing, Ula!" Maka snapped out cheerily. Ula, who had been waiting in the wings the entire time, snapped to attention. She dashed forward, talons beating out a rhythm upon the stage as her wing glowed bright. Thanks to the Helping Hand, she reached Meowth and snapped the wing out, knocking him back. "Now, let's give them a Revelation Dance!"

"Rico! Rico! Orrrrrico!" both of the birds chirped loudly. They each moved their bodies differently, shaking pompoms and swaying back and forth. Maka moved with them, showcasing different movements of shaking her arms and twirling around. Whatever it was, the effect was instantaneous. From Mele shot a great current of electricity that sparked along one edge of the battlefield, while Ula's wings flapped out a blazing fire on the other end. The two dances met and converged, covering the battlefield and making it theirs.

"What a tactic, turning the battlefield into her own! From her last two moves, Maka has earned two flowers, putting her a point ahead of Jessilie!" Maika called out. Kalas was oddly silent.

"Well, we can't have  _them_  owning the stage! That's  _our_  job! Use Leech Seed on the sides to showcase our beauty!" Jessie called out, raising her hand above her head with a sense of theatrics. The crowd loved it, making Serena smile. She grabbed her bag and stepped out of the room to the hallway beyond. The crowd cheered, and Serena instantly decided to look for a screen while waiting for her friends. Not that she needed to wait for them, because they were all gathered, watching one of the screens in the corridor. She joined them, but said nothing. The Leech Seed had sprouted, taking command of the battlefield by choking the electricity and setting one of the roots ablaze.

"Stop Gourgeist with Captivate!" Maka cried out.

"Oh no, you don't! Meowth, Fury Swipes!" Meowth saluted and bounded forward. Serena saw Pikachu shaking his head with some humor as his archenemy landed right in front of the hearts that Mele was flinging out. He swiped through, making them come off as comparatively tiny hearts instead, each the size of candy that fluttered away.

"Oh my! Look at Jessilie go! Taking control of the stage with amazing aplomb!"

"Come on, Maka!" Bonnie was cheering with pouted lips, but it wasn't doing much to deter Jessie's performance. Already, Maka had easily lost her lead, dropping down to two points. It was a harsh lesson to not try and control Jessie on the field. She  _always_  made the stage her own.

"I don't know, she's not that bad," Lillie commented with a little smile, petting Komala on her arm. Next to her, Hau was shoveling a malasada down, as was May, who seemed to agree they were amazing foods. "I think she could really push Serena for winning the Hope Leilani."

"Whatever it is," Ash said with a grin, "Serena's gonna win. I think she'd be fine with facing either of them. And…er…Jessilie has come really far from her days in Kalos and before."

"Uh…do we know this Jessilie? She looks  _really_ familiar," Dawn asked, peering suspiciously at the magenta-haired woman on the screen. Both of the competitors were making moves, with Maka ordering an Air Slash from Ula. The red-feathered bird struck into it, forming a compressed orb of air and firing it out. Picking up some of the heat from the fire, it grew even larger in size. This was no doubt helped by her other command.

"Helping Hand again, Mele!" Mele's cheering and yellow energy floated out, zapping into Ula, who cried out powerfully, the Air Slash growing even larger until it slammed into both Gourgeist and Meowth, knocking them far away. Maka earned another point. While the others were recovering, she went further into taking advantage. "Revelation Dance!"

"Oh no ya don't!" yelled a decisively masculine voice. Dawn stopped peering, her eyes lighting up with recognition, though she didn't voice it. Jessie, instead, made it come off that she was the one who had said it. She also passed it off that she had given the command for Meowth to gallantly run forward, his jaw opening wide, like he was going to use a Bite attack. The flames and electricity flapped out, combining together in a mighty explosion that also seemed beautiful to the eyes. Meowth leapt upon it, his jaw clamping on the explosion, itself.

Not that he could swallow it very well, and it soon exploded, sending him flying backwards and landing in a smoking heap. The crowd thought it was clearly something worthy of shocked expressions, judging by their sudden silence.

"What…what gallantry!" Maika called out, as well. "It's no wonder that the judges didn't take a point from Jessilie. Still, Maka is catching up now, just one point away from reaching Jessilie's five flowers."

"She looks angry now," Serena noted. Her friends all jumped at her presence, like they were surprised to find her there, but she just waved at them. Some of them wanted to say something, but on the screen, Jessie was moving.

"Gourgeist, let's show them not to treat our friend like that! We may argue from time to time, but we're still the closest we have to family! If that's not enough beauty to show the world, I don't know what is. Use Leech Seed and Seed Bomb!" Jessie commanded. The Pumpkin Pokémon suddenly started spitting out the wide array of seeds, all of different shapes and sizes, each flying all over the place. Roots emerged from the ground, almost like a stationary Frenzy Plant, while the Seed Bomb exploded around them. That distracted the dancing Oricorio just long enough with the dazzling fireworks to trap them up in the growing Leech Seed.

"Wow, what a shot! I know we battled way back in Heahea City, but you're awesome!" Maka's voice called out. "You'd be perfect for a leading villain in my film, too! Maybe even get top billing with the other lead actors!"

"You flatter me," Jessie said, fanning her face. "I suppose I could give thought to acting for you if it puts me on the world stage."

"Sounds awesome!" Maka said with her usual grin. Serena shook her head with a smile; only Maka could take a loss and turn it into the ultimate kind of gain. "But you'll have to beat me if you want me to consider you! Use Revelation Dance and Steel Wing!"

"Corrrrio!" Both of the Oricorio did their best, even as Jessie earned her second to last flower. Mele's pompoms were free, jiggling furiously as the electricity blasted around him, ripping away the plants, all while Ula did her own style of dance, slicing through the plants with her Steel Wing. That didn't mean Jessie wasn't moving. She was motivated now, and Maka earning another flower wasn't about to put a stop to her plans.

"Shadow Ball, supersized! Ahahahahaha!" Jessie laughed out maniacally, making Bonnie slap her forehead. Gourgeist floated forward, facing in a front-wise direction as she summoned forth a giant Shadow Ball that crackled and pulsed before firing off. Mele's electricity burst forward as well, while Gourgeist was pushed back. The gigantic Shadow Ball collided with the electricity, absorbing it as it whirred forward, looking like a darker version of Pikachu's Electro Ball as it finally made contact, exploding into fine sparks in midair, painting the sky with their yellow and black sheen.

"And that's it!" Maika cried. Jessie's flowers were spinning, all filled in, and Serena took a breath. The course was set for tomorrow's finale. Jessie caught Gourgeist on the screen, picking up Meowth and spinning around with glee. When she stopped, she faced the camera and smirked, like she was challenging Serena, herself. She nodded, even knowing Jessie couldn't see her. "Jessilie has cleared the semifinal! You all know what that means!

"Tomorrow is the final day of the Hope Leilani, and it's a final, Serena versus Jessilie, that you won't want to miss!"

"Well, I'm sure Serena will win it all," Clemont said confidently. Everyone there turned to face her, and she smiled at them. She didn't say anything, leaving only her smile as what needed to be said. Then she turned her mind to the other thing that needed to be done, spinning on her feet and running for the exit with a wave.

"I'll catch up with you later! There's something I need to do!" Serena yelled out. The others blinked at her as she ran for the exit from the stadium. Rather, most of them did. In seconds, Ash was right alongside her, which she wasn't surprised about, and was quite grateful for.

"You were amazing out there!" he breathed as he ran. She grinned at him, but didn't stop. She just angled her feet in the snow, aiming for the ride down to the base of Mount Lanakila. Less and less people populated that area as they ran, still inside the stadium, so it was quite easy to see the person that she had wanted to find.

"Keoni!" she yelled out. Said boy stopped and turned to face her, hitching his bag, while she skidded forward. Ash caught her to prevent her from falling over. "You're leaving?"

"Yeah. I want to go back to Po Town…my father's supposed to be going there for some building supply orders. It would be helpful to have a familiar face to handle things, and help the town out, just in case…" Keoni answered. He turned his body to face the couple, looking at them and sizing them up and down. Then he sighed and bowed low. "Please accept my apologies for all of my rudeness to the two of you. I was childish. Maybe I still am, but…I just needed to say that."

"It's no problem, I guess," Ash said, scratching at his nose and stepping forward. He held a hand out to the boy, who blinked at it with confusion. "Can't say I like you all that much, but…I can't hate you, either. So, why don't we just let the past be the past, and build for a better future?"

"Hm…" Keoni said, his eyes still considering the hand. He didn't take it, but Serena knew it wasn't for the same reasons that he wouldn't take it before now. Finally, he chuckled. "If we can find it. But I get it; Serena could never have been mine, anyway…she was always…Someday, we'll meet again, and by then, maybe I'll have what you two have!"

"I'm sure it's there, somewhere," Serena said. Keoni reached out now and took Ash's hand, the two seemingly settling their feud at long last. Their grip looked a little tight, likely from the intensity that their own sort of rivalry used to hold, but they parted amicably. Serena wished she could have said or done something more, like a comment on their battle and his mistimed Z-Move, or maybe about how  _they_  were finally parting, but Keoni's body language told her that she'd done more than enough. He turned with a wave and began stepping on his ride down. Before the doors closed, he turned.

"Oh, and tell that girl, Maka, that when I reach my father's level, I'll fund her movie. In the meantime, I'll look to take the position of Ali'i ka Leilani right from you, Serena! I won't make the same Z-Move mistake I did in our battle again next time!" His challenge was delivered with a smirk, and then the doors closed, the lift beginning to take him right down the mountain. Serena raised her hand in a wave, as well, as Ash returned to her side, and she noticed Pikachu was missing. Keoni's apology was a step to heal the hurtful things he'd said since they'd known him, yet for Serena it solidified one thing as she walked towards the finals of the Hope Leilani: sometimes it wasn't  _all_  about smiles.

Often, you had to deliver a sharp slap to make others smile again, and then have others fill in the hole caused by that slap with their own smiles, to make the world a better place.

* * *

Serena found herself unable to sleep that night. Well, she was able to get  _some_  rest, but the anticipation of what was about to happen the next day did enter into her mind more than she had thought it would. Sure, there were moments that all of her friends tried to distract her from it, such as Ash, Clemont and Hau becoming obsessed with watching the preliminaries that were whittling down the number of competitors for the League rather swiftly. There were also things like Dawn, May and Lillie taking her shopping. Although, she found herself really just going through the motions of it.

She did think she saw Jessie, dressed in a vendor costume alongside James and Meowth along the way, however. It amazed her that the magenta-haired woman didn't feel the need to practice, but then again, it wasn't like Serena was either. Knowing that, she tried to relax and enjoy herself in the moment, but there was only so much she could say or do to take her mind away from the impending finals. Maka running into her at dinner didn't help matters.

"She's really good, Serena! You gotta be on your toes! I know you're the best actress that there can be for the role!" she said, her fists to her chest before her hair flopped forward. She rapidly tied it up in a bun and grinned. "I'll be cheering for you the whole way!"

"Thank you, Maka," Serena said, trying to ignore the nervousness in her stomach. A couple tables away had been Brock, Aria and Gary. The Kalos Queen attracted her attention the most, reminding her of her loss in the Master Class back in her home region.  _But this isn't the Master Class, and Jessie isn't Aria. We can all do this!_

That was what she told herself, but it was so much harder to remind oneself in the cold and dark hours of night. Maka's words of encouragement and warning were constantly there, and Serena wondered if she was saddened by her loss at all. Then again, Maka was the kind of person who would push that away if it meant not making others upset. The "consummate director" as she would likely call herself. Thinking on her friend, it bolstered Serena's confidence and had her step out of their little cabin, calling all of her Pokémon out.

"Today's the day, everyone," she said, kneeling down to be at the smallest one's levels. "We've worked really hard to get here, and I know Jessie has, as well. Our road doesn't end here, though! Once we've won, I know we'll have the strength to carry on, no matter what the obstacles. We'll be ready for anything, even Aria!"

"Brai!" Braixen agreed, taking her wand out and holding it out to them. They each reached in to place their hands upon it in promise. Only one of them would be competing in the battle that day, but Braixen offering her wand without provocation proved they would all be battling with her in spirit. Ash and the others were still sleeping above, but she knew they'd all be there for her, too. Her arms flung forward, taking her beloved Pokémon into a hug. Without them, she'd never have gotten so far.

"Thank you. Now, let's walk this road, together." Her words emboldened them, making them all stand up straight. The door creaked open to the cabin, and Serena turned to see everyone standing there, already dressed for the day. Ash ran forward, as if to embrace her but nearly slipped on the step. Bonnie grabbed him, but it sent them all tumbling to the ground.

"That didn't go well…" Ash groaned out, Pikachu sending out a shock for being trapped underneath them. "But I know the finals will! Serena, give it everything you've got! You'll make the Ali'i ka Leilani, and I'll win the League! Side by side!"

"You got it!" Serena agreed, sending a wink at her boyfriend. No longer feeling apprehensive or nervous, the group gathered together at large and made their way to the stadium. It was just as packed as ever, but buzzing with a certain sort of excitement. Serena turned to her friends, placing a hand behind her head. "Everyone! This is for you! For your smiles! Without them, I wouldn't be here!"

"Go get 'er!" Bonnie cheered.

"Yeah! Go Serena! Rotom estimates chances at fift-"

"And we'll be going. Come on, Rotom," Clemont said, grabbing the unruly Pokédex and dragging it off. Lillie beamed at Serena before deciding to run forward and hug her.

"You can do it, because…because you saved me…" she whispered. Serena was surprised by the confession, but the tears in Lillie's eyes spoke to no lies in her. She gripped the blonde's shoulders and then turned away, all of her Pokémon at her side. They remained until she reached the waiting room, where Jessie was waiting.

"Well, looks like this is it, twerpette. Of course, I'll be the one becoming the Ali'i ka Leilani," she scoffed out, while Serena dressed quickly. Serena had to laugh at that, until Jessie sighed vocally. "Though I suppose that since we lose to you on such a consistent basis anyway, it wouldn't be the worst thing if I lost to you of all people. So, just do your worst!"

"I'll do my best," Serena said, finally adjusting her dress. She reached forward, and the two clasped hands in what felt like an utterly bizarre friendship with far too much bizarre history behind it. There was a brief call on the radio, asking them to make their way towards the battlefield. Jessie went ahead, but Serena looked to her Pokémon. "This is it. Together."

"Cham cham!" Pancham agreed, thumping his chest. Serena looked to Primarina, and nodded at her first Pokémon in their current region. Just as Ash would only use his Alolan team in the League, she now wanted to win with the brave and elegant Primarina. She held a pokeball out, and Primarina pressed a fin to it, sucking herself inside. It was time.

Serena walked forward with purpose, her Pokémon with her, but hanging back as she began to walk through the halls. The cries of the crowd were growing louder as she continued to do so, the ground practically shaking. Then Maika's voice joined the fray.

"It's finally here! The event of grace and beauty has reached its climax!" her voice roared out. The crowd roared with her and Serena saw the light growing brighter. Her stomach was doing flips, and her heartbeat was audible. "Two trainers, Serena and Jessilie, stand atop the summit, but only one can reach the absolute peak that is the Ali'i ka Leilani! Which one will it be? We're about to find out!"

"Serena!"

"JESSILIE!" The crowd was screaming their approvals of the two of them, and Serena breathed in and out, stepping upwards to meet up with Jessie on the center stage. Her gaze traveled to the side, noticing the judges watching them raptly, especially Akela, whose eyes were twinkling with encouragement. Not that she was playing favorites. In the stands just beyond, the honey blonde could see her father, hands clasped as he watched the stage. Serena faced forward.

"The final battle, the ultimate clash," Kalas was speaking out in hushed tones, likely to make it all more dramatic. "As Maika has informed me, this will be a one-on-one battle between Serena and Jessilie, as an Ali'i ka Leilani needs to deal with change and the ability to handle single missteps that could put an end to their grace. Correct?"

"That's right!" Maika said excitedly. "Now is that time! Serena. Jessilie. The battle for the Ali'i ka Leilani begins here and now!"

Serena breathed in, sound fading away as she stared across at Jessie, both nodding to one another. Behind Jessie, Serena could see all of her friends standing there, cheering, even if she didn't hear them. Even Maka was there, all four of her Oricorio out alongside Pikachu, Dedenne and Piplup in cheering. She wasn't going to let them down. Instead, she held her pokeball out, just like Jessie, and they tossed them forward without an audible word, Bewear and Primarina both emerging. They must have had the same idea.

There was a chiming, their faces appearing on the boards, set for the final stage.  _Let's begin._

"Primarina, Aqua Jet!" Serena cried powerfully. Her beloved Pokémon gave a cry, surrounded by water and shooting off for Bewear. They were on an even level now, striding for the same thing, respect between them. Neither would give an inch. Primarina shot forward, but Jessie was already smirking.

"Brutal Swing!" Jessie almost laughed out, though there was surprisingly little condescension in her voice. Bewear cried out as well, swinging her arms just as Primarina reached her. The attack slammed into the Soloist Pokémon, knocking her down to the ground and causing her to bounce along the stage. Jessie earned an easy point, to the cheers of her fans. Serena wasn't giving in, though.

"Counter that with Bubblebeam!" Serena called out. Primarina bounced on to her tail and sent the bubbles blasting outwards towards Bewear in a fast moving stream, each shining in the lights of the stadium.

"Start spinning my adorable Bewear, and use Hidden Power!" Jessie called. Bewear squealed happily, stomping her giant legs on the ground and beginning to spin. Orbs formed on the tips of her giant arms and fired out. They collided with Bubblebeam. Some of the concentrated streams still slammed into Bewear, but a lot of them exploded fiercely about the area with silvery, aqueous light.

"Each of our finalists has earned a point from that clash, leaving Jessilie in the lead!" Maika announced. Serena sucked a breath in. Bewear was still spinning rapidly.

"Use Disarming Voice!" she yelled out. From her standing position, Primarina came back down, crying loudly in her melodic voice. For its name, it seemed to soothe the entire audience, but that wasn't the case for Bewear. The heart-shaped soundwaves flew out, slamming into Bewear and knocking it off balance, the popping pink hearts framing her figure and forcing Bewear to spin about on one leg as she teetered towards Primarina. Another point up for her, and one down for Jessie.

"Low Sweep!" Jessie snapped out, flicking her hair like the diva she always acted as.

"Bewaaaa!" Bewear squealed. Her off balance leg came kicking out, nailing Primarina right on the head and sending her cascading to the side. It was an impressive display of regaining balance, and the judges seemed to think so, granting Jessie another point. They were tied up, it seemed.

"Primarina, get away with Aqua Jet!" Serena called. Primarina nodded, the water swirling around her again and she shot off into the air, putting distance between herself at Bewear. "Now, fire off a Sparkling Aria!"

"Prima!" Primarina acknowledged, throwing her flippers outside of the water veil as a large orb was formed of compressed, sparkling water. It then fired out, leaving a little mist behind it as it sailed for Bewear.

"That's leaving things so easy! Use Brutal Swing today! Knock it away!" Jessie said, tossing the hem off her dress back and forth. Bewear's arm seemed to glow a little and then it swung forward, ripping through the globe of water and making the shimmer effect spread onto their opponent. Serena grimaced; like usual, Jessie owned the stage, dropping her to one flower while the prima donna owned three.

Serena knew she'd just have to turn it around and make that disadvantage into an advantage. "Primarina, Bubblebeam, wide spread! Make them suspend in the air!"

"Rinaaaaa!" Primarina cried, falling to touch upon the ground. Her bubbles spewed out, hanging in the air and obscuring vision from Bewear, who raised a paw to her mouth. Jessie was yelling for another spinning Brutal Swing to "pop all the bubbles", but Primarina's water veil hadn't vanished yet.

"Let's get 'em!" Serena cried, pointing forward. Primarina shot forward, right through the collected bubbles, gathering them against her figure as she slammed into Bewear and drove her back like a spinning drill before shooting straight upward to avoid any chance of being caught. She spun out, the bubbles forming a calming rain, with a tiny rainbow above the site of their battle. "Now, Disarming Voice!"

"Get those bubbles away with Hidden Power!" Jessie cried, snapping her fingers. Bewear began to move, but Primarina was in the groove of things, moving faster as she sent her heart soundwaves blasting upon the stage, practically imprinting the ground with it. The bubbles popped rapidly, tinged with pink glitter, each bubble like a little heart of their own.

"What a final battle! Just look at the judges, staring in rapt fascination as these women tie their scores up at three flowers!" Maika was crying out, sounding beyond thrilled. Serena snuck a peak at the enthralled judges, especially the discerning Miss Akela.  _You make me smile._

"Come on, twerpette, stop pulling your punches!" Jessie suddenly snapped. Serena looked across to her, and the woman was at the edge of her trainer's box, staring her down tauntingly. "This is our final battle, maybe forever! What if I leave the team, hmm? What would happen then? I want to go out beating you at your best, or you sending me blasting off one last time! So, stop pulling your punches and perform like a real Performer!"

"Jessie…" Serena breathed. She smiled softly; it wasn't like she hadn't been trying, but now, Serena felt emboldened. Her enemy was calling to her, willing to battle her on that even level. No, not enemy…they were, in some way, kindred spirits and friends. She flashed back to the battle in Heahea City, how she had worried that obtaining her own dream would stop others from smiling. She knew that wasn't the case now, because she couldn't take the whole world on her shoulders. Staring across at Jessie, the taunting smirk on the woman's lips, she could tell that whoever won this battle, both would smile at the end.

_That_  was what it meant to be a Performer.

"Okay, then! No more holding back! Primarina!"

"Prrrrrima!"

"You, too, Bewear, we're kicking this off with Baby Doll Eyes!" Jessie called, giving a kick of her leg that got the crowd riled. Bewear's hands traveled up to her face, eyes shining in a way that made Primarina shiver a bit. Naturally, the woman didn't leave it there. "Low Sweep!"

"Primarina, get ready for it by whirling your bubbles around you!" Serena cried, throwing a hand up into the air and clenching it in a fist. Bewear charged across the field, while Primarina spun, bubbles surrounding her entire figure. The large leg made contact, slamming into her and earning Jessie yet another flower. Including the one from her Baby Doll Eyes, it brought the woman to five.

The bubbles didn't dissipate, however, continuing to cling to Primarina's form.

"Now, use Aqua Jet to make a vortex!" Serena called. The water raced forth, making Primarina even faster than before. And she whirled in the air. With the bubbles around her, it soon created a froth of water that spun faster and faster around Bewear, trapping her in place. The chime indicated that Serena had earned herself another point. "Now let's go with an Oceanic Operetta!"

"Primaaaaa!" Primarina called, breaking out of the vortex as Serena crossed her arms in front of herself, Z-Ring glowing with a blue glow, the Primarium-Z rising to the surface. The Soloist Pokémon, too, was surrounded in the light as Serena's arms uncrossed, flowing like waves.

"That's what I'm talking about!" Jessie called. Primarina stood, summoning the giant orb of water that she then sent forward towards Bewear. "Use Hidden Power with Brutal Swing!"

"Weeeee!" Bewear said, already beginning to spin as the edge of the water globe touched her. It soon consumed her in its entirety, leaving Jessie giddily dancing in her spot with glee. Bewear certainly went at it, and soon the entire orb was glowing a bright silver swirl that eclipsed and encapsulated the entire space within the globe until the attack broke and some water from the impact of the strikes rained down upon all of them, even the trainers. The Z-Move hadn't been demolished, but Bewear had made herself look dazzling in the glowing globe before it exploded with more water through the air.

"Whoo! This is amazing!" Kalas called out in excitement. "These trainers aren't giving an inch, even though Jessilie seems to be one flower away from her victory."

"And we won't give up. We'll win it with this! Low Sweep!" Jessie said, smirking once more at Serena. Bewear landed with a thud following the Z-Move, but began to run. The honey blonde could feel herself beginning to sweat, fun settling into her veins with a smile on her face. Jessie was also smiling beneath the smirk. They were simply having fun.

"Primarina, fire your Sparkling Aria right into the air! Then use Aqua Jet!" Primarina acted as quickly and concisely as she could. She raised up on her tail fin and fired the orb of water straight up into the air. Then she became one with the water and shot up, just as Bewear reached her. The Low Sweep missed, causing Jessie to lose a point. Primarina, meanwhile, continued on, joining with the globe and then arching back through the air. "Yeah! Strike it from above!"

"Marinaaa!" she called out and impacted with Bewear, sending water splashing all over the place, the entire stage completely covered in it, making it glisten in the lights. Two points were suddenly added to Serena's score. The final curtain to their finals was soon.

"Serena has turned it around!" Maika was squealing, her voice so high it almost sounded like glass shattering. "This is so close I can't believe it! Harry, hold me!"

"Now, Bubblebeam!"

"Hidden Power!" The two instantly reared back, sending their projectile attacks streaming right for one another without a moment's thought. They collided in midair, and there was a chime, but since the battle wasn't declared as over yet, Serena knew they were merely tied. The next collision of moves was crucial for them both. Mist settled over them, along with some hanging bubbles.

"Come on, Jessilie! Show her who's boss!"

"We're all rootin' for ya!" Serena had to laugh, even as Jessie pursed her lips and scoffed.

"Those idiots…" the magenta-haired woman chuckled under her own breath, though it was obvious how much she loved all of them. Then, Serena heard her own friends calling for her from above.

"Yeah! Serena, you can do this!" Ash was screaming in tandem with Lillie. The others all sounded like an assorted mess of words until the two she had grown so close to her screamed together. "You can be the Ali'i ka Leilani!"

"Bewear, get to it with Brutal Swing!" Jessie screamed, indicating it was for the final clash. The sound of the spinning and dancing Bewear knocking apart bubbles drew closer, though still was not visible. All that was visible was mist, as some of Bewear's own remaining orbs of Hidden Power seemed to make contact with those orbs and create a residual haze through the mess of bubbles. Serena's eyes opened a little wider.

"Primarina, let's show the whole world your wonderful performance that can heal everyone!" Serena said. Primarina turned her head, understanding the message. "Now, Disarming Voice, and send a Sparkling Aria through it! That's who we are!"

"Primarine," she added, fanning her flippers out and calling out with her melodious singing voice. The heart shaped waves soared out and upwards, clearing away the mist with their strength. Then, Primarina sent an orb of water through the middle of them all. Serena clenched her fists, hoping it would work.

The orb soared through, like a gift given from the heart, just as Bewear was making a strike forward. Then it burst apart with a slap of Primarina's flippers, becoming a soft rain that fell upon both of the combatants. Bewear halted in her attack, frozen in midair and blinking. Her body was glowing green, as if healing itself of the damage taken through the battle. She continued to blink rapidly at the unexpected and even Jessie looked in surprise at how beautiful both of their Pokémon looked from the move.

"Sparkling Aria can hurt or heal burns, so we made a way to heal more…but Jessili…Jessie, thank you," Serena spoke, smiling as Primarina took a bow. The crowd wasn't sure how to react, waiting with anticipation. "You've driven me to become a better Performer and trainer, even with all your antics. For that, thank you for sharing  _your_  smile with  _me_."

Jessie was taken aback, and then she chuckled once more, waving it off with an expression that said no thanks were necessary.

_Ding!_  The final bell rang out. Serena turned her head slowly, facing the screen, and her eyes widened. Flowers were spinning on the screen and the crowd was erupting in amazing cheers for the winner that had been decided from that final clash, their face on the screen. And Serena began to cry.

"It's been decided! The winner of the Hope Leilani, the new Ali'i ka Leilani, a symbol of peace and love for all of the Alola region has been chosen!" Maika called, shouting so loud that it sounded like her throat had gone hoarse. Applause was heard, as well as continuous cheers, especially with the judges standing and clapping. Suddenly flowers fell onto the stage, despite the celebrations and awards not happening until well after the League and the Day of Stars.

"Alola, your new Ali'i ka Leilani is the wonderful trainer, Serena!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Serena won! Yeah! I tried to create some suspense on that end, but I'm not entirely sure how successful that really was. I'd like to think I did a decent job. Obviously, this brings an end to the Hope Leilani and the rivalries developed therein. I hope that the way Keoni had changed and his reasons for it were good to all of you, as were the many battles this chapter. I decided to go with Primarina to represent that this was an Alola quest. Braixen will get her moments later. Of course, next chapter kicks off the League in grand style!
> 
> We're kicking into more action that I hope to deliver on, but the story isn't done yet! So, until it is, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	17. A League

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A large part of my job as a writer is deciding how much to show and what's important, along with how to present it. This also leads to me cutting things or condensing things. In the end, though, I hope it's still beneficial to read for all of you. Time for Chapter 17!

Chapter 17

A League

Ash's heart was fit to burst, swelling with emotion. He was on his feet, staring out across the stadium and down to his girlfriend in the center of it all. She looked overwhelmed, as though she could hardly believe it, herself. The crowd around him cheered and screamed at the end result of the Hope Leilani, but Ash found himself filtering them out. Right next to him, Bonnie was jumping up and down wildly.

"Yeah! She did it! She did it!" Bonnie cried out. She grabbed ahold of Dedenne, Squishy and Bluey, twirling around with every jump. "Serena…is AMAZING!"

"Yes, Rotom thinks she is, too!" Rotom said, though Ash wasn't sure how much the Pokédex understood.

"She was…so…" Ash turned his head, seeing Lillie's face wrought with emotion. She had her hands to her mouth, tears streaming from her eyes in joy. Ash was brought back, just for a second, to the time they had first met. How Lillie's eyes had lit up so amorously at the thought of seeing a single Ceremony, of Serena bringing a smile to that face. Now, they were here, and Serena had done what once seemed impossible to all of them, even herself. Maka was also saying something, but since it was a mutter, it was lost in the crowd while she sketched Serena's face furiously.

"I'm…I can't believe it…" Clemont breathed out, practically collapsing in his chair, like he was being deflated from the event. Ash couldn't blame him. So long they had been traveling together, working towards their dreams, and now Serena had taken a giant leap forward. It wasn't the position of Kalos Queen that she had long strived for, but she knew that; instead, it was one step closer to taking the crown away from Aria. The cheering crowd proved that. Behind him, the rest of his friends were all applauding and cheering as well. They might not have comprehended how huge this was for Serena, but that didn't matter.

"It's decided! We'll drag her with us for all of us to compete!" Dawn was crying out, slapping her hands against May's. Ash turned his head a little, noticing Brock nodding, while Gary wore a lazy smirk, as though he'd been confident she would do it all along. Ash chuckled a little, remembering the days they'd stood together as a team during the Kalos Team Tournament. Perhaps they weren't as exuberant as the others, but it was a sure sign of how far they'd all come together.

Ash's gaze once more turned forward, looking across the stadium. He realized with that budding anticipation that he'd be battling there all too soon. However, his gaze stopped, looking straight across at the man on the other side of the bleachers. Ash wondered if Serena had even had the chance to think of him, but now that Ash saw him for himself, he could see the affection and pride. Y was standing there, smiling down at his daughter. His head turned up, locking gazes with Ash, and he nodded. Ash breathed out.

"Everyone, we did it!" Serena's voice finally called out, breaking the connection there. Ash turned his gaze downward yet again, as he saw all of Serena's Pokémon diving for her upon the stage. She gathered them all up in a giant hug, tears streaming down each of their faces. Flowers continued to pop out across the stage in a beautiful sign of celebration. Ash reached up, hardly realizing he'd had tears of his own before wiping them away.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu called out to him, and he nodded.

"Guys, let's go!" he called to his friends. Bonnie twirled around, grabbing hold of both Rotom and her brother, pulling them off the chairs. Lillie was already ahead of Ash, almost leaping over Hau's legs as he pumped his fists in the air. Ash skirted around them, making sure that Bonnie wasn't far behind. The others weren't following, but that seemed just fine.

Within seconds of running, their entire group was dashing out through the exits and into the corridors, running for the waiting room they had last left Serena at. Lillie was charging full ahead, her ponytail bouncing up and down as they all did the same. It didn't take them long, most of the crowd having still remained behind to cheer for the new Ali'i ka Leilani. Lillie reached the door first, slamming it open and coming to a stop. Ash nearly bumped into her and saw Team Rocket in the waiting room themselves, James and Meowth bawling their eyes out.

"Ya were so close, Jess!"

"One more and you would have done it!" James cried out. Jessie was looking down at them with a frown, but also a sigh on her lips. She seemed almost incapable of saying anything, but Ash watched her. Sure, they were enemies, but Ash had respect for her in that moment. She'd been able to push Serena to her limits and call forth her kindest side, all within the same battle.

"Well, if I had to lose to anyone, the twerpette was acceptable," Jessie sighed out before reaching forward and taking her boys into a hug. They looked surprised, even Wobbuffet, who threw his arms around her in turn. "And thanks for all the support, 'fan club'."

"Hey, we'll always be da Jessilie Fan Club," Meowth remarked, tears clearly falling from his eyes as he did so. With Team Rocket in their sobbing huddle of joy, Ash smiled a little, grinning at Pikachu before Lillie walked forward, through the waiting room. They followed, and Jessie looked up, giving a slight scoff. Before Ash reached the threshold to the corridors, her voice called back.

"Hey, twerp! You better win that League!"

"Yeah!" James remarked, twisting around. "We didn't come all the way to support you like a good luck charm, only to have you lose!"

"So, make sure ya put 'em to da screws!" Meowth assured them, looking up at Pikachu with an insistent glare. Pikachu raised a paw to indicate his acceptance of the well-wishes, but the group was moving on, letting the Team Rocket trio continue to enjoy their moment together. Lillie was already dashing through the halls, so Ash pumped his legs even faster to move forward and catch up with her. Bonnie and Clemont fell a bit behind, but Rotom flew faster than the two of them, and soon the bright light of the stadium was swiftly approaching their entire group.

"What a stunning Hope Leilani, wouldn't you say, Mr. Kalas?"

"As one who has never witnessed one before, I quite enjoyed every aspect of it. The race to the performances and the thrilling and flashy battles were all a marvel to witness! I can only imagine how the first ever Alola League will go!" Kalas called out with a little laugh, even as the cheers refused to subside.

"Right you are! And the pair of us will be here to commentate on every minute of it! In the meantime, though, Alola, let's celebrate the new Ali'i ka Leilani!" Maika's voice roared out, prompting all of the others to do the same. It was like a stampede of voices that almost bowled all of them over in every single way imaginable. "Just to remind you all, however, the awards ceremony won't be held right away. They'll be held off until some time later. Although, we do request that Miss Serena, the new Ali'i ka Leilani, remain here until the conclusion of the League!"

"Don't think that'll be a problem," Lillie laughed out as they reached the entrance to the stadium and walked forward. There, the sounds assailed them even more, though no one was really paying much attention to them, everyone too excited over the new crowning, as it were, combined with their anticipation for the remaining preliminaries and the League that would begin tomorrow.

"Serena!" Ash and Lillie called out simultaneously. Said girl looked up with tears in her eyes as she beamed at them, her entire disposition beyond sunny. Clemont and Bonnie finally caught up to them and their entire group stood there, staring across at her with a smile. Then Pikachu hopped off and leapt right for Serena, almost tackling her.

"Pipika!" he cheered happily, nuzzling her cheek. Dedenne decided to get in on it, too, though he forwent the nuzzling part. Serena hugged the both of them while the more human members of the group finished making their way up the stage to join her. Ash held a hand out.

"You were amazing," he said, smiling wide at his girlfriend. She closed her eyes, still smiling, as she reached her hand out to take his. He pulled her up and into a hug. "I told you that you could do it!"

"Yes…Thank you," she whispered in his ear. Their moment, however, was suddenly interrupted by a pressure on Ash's back that sent them all tumbling to the ground. Bonnie had dragged Clemont into a group hug, and Lillie had done so as well, making them all fall to the ground, laughing. It echoed around the space, sounding ever so jubilant, to the point that Ash could see the continued tears of joy in Serena's eyes.

"You were so incredible! So, so incredible!" Lillie cheered, sitting up on her knees. Once again, there was that sense of flashback to Ash when they first met her at Melemele Meadow. Only, things were so different. "Seeing you do that was amazing! It was so…so…"

"Incredible?" Rotom suggested in a deadpan.

"It made me so happy!" Lillie shouted out cheerfully. Serena had to laugh at that, wiping her tears away, like hearing Lillie say that made  _herself_  happy. Ash just drew himself back up, throwing off Bonnie and Clemont while he stood, hearing the sound of clopping heels over the stadium floor. He turned to see Miss Akela approaching with a smile on her lips. Over by the judges, Kiawe and Kukui were in some kind of conversation, likely about the upcoming final round of preliminaries.

"Congratulations," she spoke. That instantly earned Serena's attention, as she looked up. Ash looked, too, noticing that Akela's eyes were shimmering brightly with cheer. This was a woman who seemed to have just had her breath taken away, but her life restored in every way. "Your performances were stunning."

"Thank you, but they weren't just my performances, or for me," Serena admitted. Finally, she drew herself back into a standing position once more, helping Lillie up with her one more time. "I hope I was able to make you smile."

"Hm, you did, along with contemplating other things," Akela admitted, reaching a hand back and running it through her violet hair. She stared right at Serena, like she was contemplating her victory with her soft smile. "I think no one better is suited to the title of Ali'i ka Leilani, especially with your efforts concerning the Day of Stars."

"We're just doing the best that we can," Serena admitted. Nevertheless, she reached her hand out and clasped Miss Akela's. They were two people sharing in the same thing, Ash felt, though while Akela appeared to have turned away from her own original path, he knew it would never happen with Serena. He also had a feeling that Serena had helped Akela step back onto her own narrow path once more.

"Of course," Akela commented, letting go of the hand and turning away. "I'm very grateful to have met someone such as yourself, Serena. And thank you for taking part in the Ceremonies. It's made me consider things, about the future, depending on your own choices, of course. Though, everything isn't quite over, after all."

"Oh…yes," Serena said with a nod. She had clearly heard Maika's announcement about staying through the League, and while Ash had to wonder why, he also started settling his own thoughts on what the day tomorrow would bring for himself and all the others that were competing for that top glory. He looked to Pikachu, both becoming determined. The crowd was once more erupting with murmurs now.

"Maybe we should clear the area, guys," Clemont suggested to them. "I'm sure they'd like to get the rest of the preliminaries underway, and we need to celebrate!"

"Yes! Miss Akela, would you like to join us?" Serena asked of the fashion mogul. She turned with a light grin.

"Much as I would love to, the Kahunas and Champions will officially be arriving tonight, and myself and Kukui will be involved in meeting them. You understand." It was easy enough to understand, certainly, and Serena nodded in acceptance. With that out of the way, the group finally began to clear the stage. Lillie could barely contain the excitement within her regarding Serena's victory, though his girlfriend remained surprisingly quiet about it at this point. Perhaps it was the fact that it was still settling into her.

Whatever it was, Ash didn't push the issue all that much, knowing that she was happy without saying any words. No matter the road ahead, she always had the strength to walk it. That kind of buoyant feeling remained as she started to change into her regular clothes. Bonnie quickly pushed himself and Clemont out of the room at that point, and into all of their waiting friends.

"She must be happy," Brock commented the second he saw all of them. Ash nodded, looking back to the door. There was definitely no denying that, and he breathed in, only for his best friend to clap him on the shoulder. "So, now it's your turn, huh? You feeling ready?"

"Of course! Me and Pikachu and all of the others are ready to do this!" Ash said, throwing his fist into the air. It was something they all recognized, and everyone there did the same. Ash could now feel his own anticipation building within him, facing back to the door as it opened. Serena stepped out, looking a little surprised to see everyone there. Then she smiled, as always.

"Thank you, everyone, for all your support," Serena spoke, throwing her hands behind her back. Dawn and May threw out some thumbs up while Gary and Brock nodded. Ash finally noticed that neither Sawyer nor Miette appeared to be there, though the answer for why came a few moments later, when the bluenette's voice intruded.

"Nice job, Serena, though this doesn't change anything between us," Miette called out across the hallway as she approached with Sawyer. Looking a little more, Ash realized that Hau wasn't there, either, and reasoned he was probably annoying Gladion to death as they watched the preliminaries together. "I'm still going to become Kalos Queen when we return to Kalos. Count on it!"

"Speaking of, I think Miss Aria mentioned something about a celebration dinner for Serena," Sawyer said, sounding just a little timid as he did so. Ash could admit surprise to that, given that Sawyer had really bolstered his confidence, though, considering Brock's instant reaction, Ash understood his reasoning. Triggering Brock and his tendencies was rarely beneficial…well, most of the time.

"Then we need to go! Let's celebrate!" Brock proclaimed, pointing forward. The man didn't give them much of an option, and Ash just allowed his hand to slip into Serena's as they followed after Sawyer and the stampeding Brock to the exterior of the stadium. It was just as snowy as ever up top there, but the pace they were moving at, quickly working their way to the castle that stood as an extension, kept them rather warm.

Looking up, Ash noticed that the sky was beginning to grow a little darker, despite their closeness to the sun and moon, with all of the events surrounding the Hope Leilani appearing to have taken far longer than any of them thought. Not that it mattered, since Ash had a feeling that their intermediary celebrations would actually last a lot longer than the battle between Serena and Jessie. Soon, their large, surging group had crossed the threshold of the castle and into the large hall they had first held their greeting reception within.

"Yay! Food!" Bonnie cheered out, clearly keeping herself going with the flood of excitement that was within her. She dashed forward, grabbing Lillie along, as well, to grab plates for themselves. There was still no sign of Hau within the hall (proving Ash's theory in his mind), though as all of their group split apart to get food, Ash saw Aria approaching. She was no doubt about to congratulate Serena, so Ash let go of her hand to go and get some food, himself. Clemont was at his side, keeping an eye on Bonnie and Rotom (once again arguing about Dedenne's diet, or something like that).

"You and your team are ready for tomorrow then, I guess," Clemont breathed out. He almost sounded more nervous than Ash felt. Actually, now that Ash thought about it, he really wasn't nervous at all. It could have been from Serena's victory, or maybe it was just that this was the seventh League he was entering. "What do you plan to do with Greninja? I know you returned him to his pokeball before the first day of the Hope Leilani, but didn't send him back to Professor Oak."

"He knows I'm going to use the others, so he's saving his strength for when we need it," Ash answered, though his gaze sharpened as he ate a piece of bread. Greninja, now that he had returned to the team, had since returned to his pokeball, only emerging when he thought to do some training. It was ultimately a good strategy, Ash felt; they wanted to be relatively rested for the Day of Stars, and battling every day wouldn't do it for him. "I'm sure we can win it this time, though it's okay if we don't."

"You're awfully calm about it," Clemont responded, sipping a little on his glass. Ash reached up to rub the back of his head with a light chuckle, then reaching over to scratch Pikachu behind the ears.

"I guess," Ash responded calmly. "It's really just…I want to win, but I know I don't always need to. Winning is great, and I really get to know my opponent better, but if I can understand them just a little, even if it means losing, then the result is worth it."

"Hmm," Clemont hummed out. He reached up to take his glasses off, as he put his cup down, and cleaned them momentarily. "Ash, I'm glad to have gotten to know you. You're a much better trainer than I am, and I'm happy to call you my friend. I'm looking forward to all your battles."

"Hey, no putting yourself down like that, Clemont," Ash chastised him, throwing an arm around his friend. Clemont laughed at it, and Ash realized that the inventor wasn't actually putting himself down, but rather giving an acknowledgement that he was okay with. That matter settled between them, they turned back to the celebration meal, with Clemont soon being dragged away and roped into something by Korrina. He looked like he was having fun, despite his protests.

Like with anything involving Ash and his friends, the affair quickly became loud and boisterous all at once, the entire room atwitter. Food was passed around, and a great sense of both celebration and anticipation was there. A number of old friends came to join in congratulating Serena, including Acerola and Kiawe, along with Astrid and the members of Team Nova, a giddy Seamus coming up to Ash excitedly.

"I can't wait to watch tomorrow!" he said with a childlike expression of glee upon his face. "I've never actually attended a League in person, so seeing you battle will be like a dream come true!"

"I'm interested to see how you'll fare, as well," Kiawe noted to Ash, folding his arms across his shirtless chest. How the boy didn't get cold, Ash simply didn't really know. "I'm sure you've grown much stronger, as have all your Pokémon from the region."

"We all have, together, and that's why I'm going to win the whole League with them. It wouldn't be right, otherwise," Ash admitted. Kiawe nodded, clearly liking this kind of answer. Seconds later, Ash felt an arm settling upon him calmly.

"Whatever the case, Ashy boy is going to no doubt make it all the way to the finals, just like last time," Gary said. Ash had to chuckle a little nervously at the pressure suddenly placed upon all of them for the battles that were ahead. He looked up, catching sight of Alain chatting with Sawyer, of all people. Hearing Gary's praise and reminders brought back his loss in the Kalos League. Ash breathed in one more time; this time, things were very different.

He was finally moving into a League with his eyes wide open as to what he wanted out of it. Knowing that, he put a fist out to fistbump Gary and they all returned to their celebratory activities. Serena was definitely the busiest of them all, shaking old friends' hands and rejoicing with them, accepting a sudden phone call that seemed to be from her mother, and even facing sudden intruders with respect. It really seemed that Serena's victory saw her as a very popular figure, not that he was surprised. Her kindness and graciousness endeared her to almost everyone around her, including the still surprisingly gracious Jessie, who gatecrashed the party with more than her own fair share of supporters. More than once during the party, however, Ash also caught Serena looking over at him, like she wanted to share a moment, but there was simply no time.

That became doubly so as the party stretched on and Hau suddenly came running into the room, Pipi floating along next to him.

"They've posted the matchups for tomorrow!" he said, tossing his fists in the air a couple times before turning around. Ash broke out into a grin (while realizing he'd technically been smiling the entire evening). Then, he took one quick look at Serena, and dashed out after his friendly rival for the stadium once more. Under the night sky, the pathways on the summit of Lanakila were rather brightly lit, shining with a powerful luminescence. Up above, Ash took a quick peek at the drawing stars. It really was moving closer, day by day. Regardless, he shook his head and went inside the stadium entryway, approaching the large screen that was revealing the results of the preliminaries and the matchups for the next day. Hau cried out first. "Hey, I'm in the first round!"

"Looks like I'm in the second," Gladion commented. Ash scanned the screens, noting that Hau's picture was indeed first, along with three other trainers that looked like they would be ready to rip the sunny boy a new one. Gladion was in the row below, his portrait just as surly as his usual expression. However, it took time for Ash to find his own picture, scanning through the colorful group of competitors, before finally noticing that he was actually to take part in the final match of the day against some trainers called Kent, Kahula and Honi. Ash couldn't see them around the area, but it made him more than excited to know.

"Well, at least we won't all be facing each other in the first round. Makes it more likely to face each other later," Ash said with a nod towards his two rivals. They both responded in their own way, with Hau pumping his fists and Gladion flicking his hair. "Let's all do our bests, okay."

"Sure thing!" Hau agreed, throwing his hand out. Despite some reluctance, Gladion joined in, as did Ash, like a promise between the three of them to get as close to the finals as they could.

With the matchups now announced, everyone was starting to go their own separate ways, all of them getting ready for the exciting and unprecedented event that would be taking place. The crowd must have been pretty excited, as well, considering that the village was buzzing with rumors and gossip. Ash just ended up finding a spot on the summit where he could overlook almost the entire island of Ula'ula, breathing in the mountain air.

Pikachu was on his shoulder, staring out over the entirety of Alola before him, both filled with the rush of excitement that only a League could bring. It had been far too long. At his belt, all of his Pokémon were restless with excitement, he could tell. As if envisioning them, Ash could see Decidueye filling up on food for the battle ahead. Toucannon would likely check on all of them with a tap to the head, making sure that they were all prepared. Passimian would check to see that not a thing was out of place and they were all accurate in their movements. Kommo-o would probably challenge Pikachu to a battle, eager to prove his strength. Lastly, but not the least of which, Lycanroc would howl loudly, like a battle cry to everyone. He believed and trusted in all of his Pokémon.

At the same time, he knew all of his friends would be there, even some of those he barely knew. Brock and Gary had already shown their support, while Clemont and Bonnie had come so far with him that they would stick until the end. Misty, May, Dawn, and even Iris would be there to cheer him on, like they'd always done. There was no doubt that Alain was ready for such an enticing battle, too, in the very same vein that Seamus was giddy to watch. A chuckle escaped his mouth in a misting breath at the thought of Paul watching him. Then there were all the others that had come to take part in the battle ahead, like Korrina and Sawyer. Of course, there was also…

"Ash," she spoke, and he turned around to see Serena standing there, glistening in the moonlight. "I thought I'd find you somewhere. The party started winding down when Hau set some malasadas on fire with Incineroar, mostly because he picked a fight with Korrina's Lucario. How are you?"

"Excited," Ash answered. Serena came to his side and just stood there, looking outward, herself. She nodded silently and remained there. "Pikachu, let's do our very best. You and me, we're going to make it and show everyone how far we've come. We'll be Pokémon Masters together!"

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed, sending a bolt of lightning to the sky in order to showcase his enthusiasm. Their promise made, Ash continued to watch the island sky with Serena until the lights had dimmed and they had grown cold enough to step back inside.

The inaugural Alola League was about to begin.

* * *

Fireworks whizzed through the air, exploding in beautiful colors. They formed flowers, sparkling and glittering through the air above the dome, casting multiple shades of different colors over all the spectators in the stands. The sun had risen, bright and beautiful upon the new day which, even with the snow swirling around them, had every spectator excited.

This was none more so than Serena, who sat in her chair, clenching at her skirt with almost nervous anticipation. Not that she didn't think Ash would be unable to win, as she knew he definitely would be able to, but she felt this little extra pressure on her. Having won the Hope Leilani, it was like she was suddenly this popular figure around which many hoped to swarm. That led to Bonnie, Clemont and Lillie serving as bodyguards. Ash would have done so, too, but he was clearly looking ahead to his own battles, seated on his chair in the stands. So were the others, sitting behind and to the side of them. It almost felt like Ash had a cheering section.

"Which is ironic," Gary noted, moments before the celebrations were set to begin. Ash looked at him, giving off a rather crooked smirk at whatever the implication was supposed to be. Serena didn't dare to ask, sliding her eyes over to the very wary Bonnie. Likewise, Korrina was kicking her feet back and forth next to Clemont. Then, the fireworks stopped, making the crowd suddenly gasp in awe. The stadium went dark.

"This is different…right?" Dawn asked from behind, though no one answered her, save for Brock.

"I'd imagine it has to do with being the first League Conference for the region, and the different culture, of course," Brock commented. Serena didn't say anything, just watched as little flames appeared, one red and one blue. They sprung up, circling around the stadium before splitting and changing into different colors: yellow, purple, pink and red; the colors of the Tapus. They spun around together and then landed in a spot where they burst forth, as though commemorating the entire event.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" a voice yelled out through the darkness, easily distinctive as Kalas' voice. "The time has finally come! Here at the summit of Mount Lanakila, the Alola League has arrived!"

"Woooooooooo!" cried the crowd. Serena wasn't surprised in the slightest to find that the cheer was louder than anything the Hope Leilani had had to offer. This was truly a once-in-a-lifetime event, and none of them would miss it for the world. The lights suddenly flared back on, and a loud noise was heard, the first battlefield sliding into place. Serena quickly noticed it to look like some sort of dojo ring, with ropes and everything ringing it, despite its large size.

"I'm your proud host, League commentator, Harrison 'Harry' Kalas! With me up here is the esteemed Maika Olelo! Also with us are those who worked tirelessly to bring what will no doubt be an amazing League to Alola: raise your cheers for Miss Akela and Professor Kukui!"

"Woo! Thank you!" Kukui spoke, obviously planning to share some words with the entire screaming and cheering crowd before the events were to begin. "As a lover of Pokémon battles, myself, and seeing the sort of unity that Pokémon Leagues can bring together, I wanted to have one in Alola. Here, on Mount Lanakila, closest to the sun and moon, our legendary Pokémon both, we will have our first big brawl for the title of the  _true_  Island Champion!"

"And they're sure to be beyond exciting!" Kalas continued on, though since Kukui was displayed on the screen, Serena could tell he wasn't done. "With us are esteemed guests from all over the region and world! Give it up for the captains and Kahunas of Alola, along with a previous Island Champion  _and_ the Pokémon League Champions, Lance, Steven, Cynthia, Alder and Diantha!"

There was a great and mighty cheer, Serena noticed, as each of these people were displayed on the screen, sitting and waving from their boxes. All of those in the crowd looked up to see the rather important celebrities, and Serena could swear she also saw Kahili there (which made sense), looking like she was on the edge of her seat until Hapu pulled her back. This really  _was_ an event to remember. Kukui was also speaking again. "Well, let's not keep waiting! As the official founder of the Alola League, let's show the world the strong trainers taking part! The Alola League and Lanakila Conference is officially…OPEN!"

"YEAAAAAAAAAH!"

"And to start with, we have a series of Battle Royals!" Kalas cried out. Serena looked downward as she noticed four individuals making their way to the battlefield from opposite directions. "As the residents of Alola know, the Battle Royal is a battle in which each participant chooses a singular Pokémon against three others, paying homage to the guardian deities that protect this great region. They will do battle, with the remaining Pokémon standing as the winner! This will whittle sixty-four competitors down to sixteen! Following that, the format will be a three-on-three, and starting with the semifinals, we'll have intense full battles!

"So, first up for the battles of today that will rock your very soul with Alolan pride are…Hau, Akamu, Eric, and Ekewaka! Best battle, boys!" The crowd cheered and Ash scooted forward. He wasn't alone, as Lillie was doing much the same thing, while Hau strode to the edge of the stage, wearing his perennial grin, as always.

"Go, go, Hau! Beat 'em all!" Bonnie cheered. Dedenne joined in cheerily while Serena just watched as the referee strode forward on to the field. She couldn't really describe the other competitors, other than each of them looking rather muscly.

"This will be a Battle Royal between Hau, Akamu, Eric and Ekewaka! The trainers will choose one Pokémon each, and the one with the last Pokémon standing is the winner and will proceed to the next round!" the referee called out to them all. Then he stepped back, so he was just off the stage, and waved his hand downward.

"All right, Incineroar, let's go!" Hau called cheerily, a sharp contrast to all of the others that were in the ring. They, too, called out their Pokémon, each looking just as fierce as the last: a Pangoro, a Granbull and a Poliwrath. Rotom shot forward, wanting to look, but Bonnie grabbed it and pulled it back.

"Rotom just wants to record!"

"You can always record Ash's battles just fine," Clemont suggested until Korrina shushed him. She had her fists clenched and was looking excited for the opening battle of the Alola League. Further down, Astrid did the same, as well. The bell rang out.

"Pangoro, Bullet Punch!" the trainer named Akamu called. Pangoro roared loudly, fists glowing a bright silver as he charged forward for the Pokémon that were running towards the center of the stage, proving to be Granbull, alone.

"Incineroar, let's do some Bulk Up! Strengthen those muscles we got eating malasadas!" Hau ordered with his grin. Incineroar grinned from the side of the ring, flexing his muscles as a powerful red glow covered his body. He wasn't the only one preparing an attack, as Poliwrath seemed to be framing the stage with its hands.

"Must be using Mind Reader," Brock commented from behind. That was the only solidly decent answer for the Pokémon not moving from that state. Pangoro had reached the center and was punching forward rapidly before Granbull could make a move. The Fairy type was pummeled by the blows, making it roar in pain while Incineroar and Poliwrath both finished their preparations.

"Outrage, Granbull!" called the other remaining trainer.

"Guraaaan!" Granbull roared out, a purple and blue aura flaring around it as its eyes glowed red. It then charged forward, like a feral beast, slamming into Pangoro before leaping over to Incineroar and swiping at him. Hau called for a dodge, and Incineroar leapt upwards, on to the ropes in order to avoid the strike.

"Body Slam, Pangoro!" called the following command. Pangoro came thundering across the ring, flying forward through the air and bringing the brunt of his weight down upon Granbull in an action that sent them both sprawling down to the ring of the mat. They tumbled across it in a mess of flailing large limbs.

"Now, Poliwrath, Dynamic Punch!" the final trainer called out. Poliwrath, wearing a very fierce expression upon its face, pounced forward, its fist glowing blue and red simultaneously. It reached the two wrestling Pokémon and slammed downward from above. The ring shook, and Hau sprung into his action.

"Use Cross Chop!" he said, jumping up a little. Incineroar grinned once more and jumped off of the ropes, spinning through the air as both of his arms glowed brightly. He then crossed them, before swiping them forward as he passed through the grappling trio. They all froze a moment, and then the attack sent them blasting them backwards against the ropes. "Nice one!"

"Water Pulse, Poliwrath!" the command came. Serena kept watching as the smaller Poliwrath was the first to recover, summoning a large orb of water between his hands and flinging it at Incineroar's back, causing him to stumble.

"Use Headbutt, Granbull!" called the orders of Eric. Granbull, having gotten to its knees, began charging forward almost recklessly, though it was veering terribly off course. Serena easily recognized the issue, even without Clemont's comment: Granbull was confused.

"Hmm, it's like a giant wrestling match," Maka commented, her sketchpad on her lap as she considered the battle, almost invisible to most of them there, but seemingly interested in the Alola League enough to sit with them. She hadn't drawn anything yet, showing that she wasn't wholly inspired by the battle yet. Either way, Serena agreed with her observation, especially as Pangoro showed the same level of confusion, yet was still swinging a Hammer Arm out at his trainer's order. The two confused attacks collided, straining against each other. Granbull's head pushed against Pangoro's arm, leaving Hau to deal with Ekewaka and his Poliwrath.

"Use Submission!" Of course, Incineroar was still recovering from the Water Pulse as Poliwrath ran around to one of the open ropes of the ring, tossing himself against it. He then sprang forward, grabbing Incineroar around his flaming center and bringing him down to the ground. It must have been hot and damaging, considering the smoke coming from Incineroar's belly. Nevertheless, he brought the big cat down.

"Snap out of it, Pangoro, and use Body Slam!"

"Pangohhh!" Pangoro roared, shaking his head and then sending his Hammer Arm upward into Granbull's jaw. Akamu was pointing at the struggling Incineroar and Poliwrath, giving his Pokémon the message. Pangoro changed targets and leapt through the air, slamming on top the now piling group of Pokémon upon the stage.

"No way, Incineroar! Flare Blitz to get back up and knock 'em all with Cross Chop!" Hau said, still in as chipper a mood as ever. The crowd was cheering wholeheartedly at the impressive display of battling that was being shown.

"Gaaaaaao!" Incineroar bellowed out, suddenly surrounded by red flames that came from its waist as it shot upwards with the attack, as if powered by a jet of some sort, but only being his flames. Pangoro and Poliwrath fell away as the giant cat landed and made chops outward that knocked the both of them back. Granbull was starting to come out of confusion, running for the trio of prized fighters.

"Dynamic Punch, my Poli man!" Ekewaka called, but Incineroar was already darting away. His big bulk still made him incredibly agile as Poliwrath's wrist glowed with the same colors as before. Serena looked into the ring, noticing that none of Hau's opponents seemed to have Z-Rings…or if they did, they weren't all that adept at figuring out when to use them. Especially when it came to Akamu, upon whom all attacks were converging, including a Play Rough from Granbull. In seconds, the Daunting Pokémon was besieged by the attacks and thrown backwards, puffs of white smoke appearing around his figure. It took only seconds before the loud sound confirmed Pangoro hitting the ropes with force and passing out.

"Pangoro is down and Akamu is out!" Kalas cried to the cheering crowd as the referee made the call. They were more contained than the ones on Royal Avenue, but still excited at the caliber of competition here. None of the competitors left in the ring were backing down. Poliwrath was already on the attack, creating two orbs of Water Pulse that it was flinging at Incineroar and Granbull both.

"Use the ropes to deflect it!" Hau said. It reminded her of how Ash would use the field. Incineroar was at the ropes as the orb soared at him, but he whirled away at the last second, causing the ropes to snap back. The orb of water hit it with perfect timing as it rebounded, bouncing off the ropes and heading right back for Poliwrath, slamming it in the face. At that exact moment, Granbull had emerged, chomping down on Poliwrath's arm. "Now, some Cross Chop!"

"Gerrroar!" Incineroar screamed out, crossed arms glowing as he reached his two opponents and smacked at both of them, breaking them apart in that moment and tossing them to the side.

"Play Rough!" Eric called. At the same moment, a Dynamic Punch was called on again, as well. Hau wasn't backing down, though, firing up with his own sense of battling pride.

"Darkest Lariat!" Incineroar leapt above the fray as the three attacks sought to collide with one another. It was clearly too much to the cheering crowd, who grew louder. Granbull reached Poliwrath first, pummeling him in very quick succession with the familiar white puffs of smoke before the Dynamic Punch could get off. Poliwrath was slammed to the side, giving Granbull space as the poor Water type looked spent, the referee calling his loss. It didn't last long, however, as the black flames on Incineroar's claws slammed into Granbull and knocked it back. "All right, Incineroar! This is totally your ring! So, let's win the battle!"

Just like that, Incineroar howled loudly, and Hau crossed his arms. His Z-Ring burst with an almost dark flame, before Hau reared back like he was an animal. Incineroar crouched down, a feral grin upon his face. Ash twitched a bit, as though something was happening inside one of his pokeballs. The ropes of the ring suddenly seemed to glow red hot, trapping Granbull within, and the Heel Pokémon leapt back, on to those very ropes before jumping straight up. "Malicious Moonsault!"

"Gerrrroaaaaaar!" Incineroar growled out with ferocity as he soared through the air like a great, dark fireball and landed upon Granbull. The ring exploded outward, the ropes snapping all about from the inferno of flame that resulted, like a cage of unending fire. Serena could feel the heat from where she was, already knowing the end result of the battle before it finished and the referee made his call.

"Granbull is unable to battle! The winner of the Battle Royal round is Incineroar and Hau!" the referee called. The crowd erupted with cheers and Serena looked to see Hau's face fill in one of the sixteen blank portraits.

"Yes!" Lillie cheered, throwing her hands up without a care while Hau did the same thing down below. She was clearly happy that the boy was continuing on. Hau was easily the same, calling Incineroar back and running off the battlefield gleefully. Said field sunk back down and soon rose back up, now containing a rather grassy composition.

"That was an exciting battle between brawlers, I have to say," Kalas called out. "I have to wonder just what our next rounds will hold as we see our next group of competitors, the four illustrious trainers, Heather, Purdy, Gladion and Ikaika!" Ash was really leaning off his seat now.

"This should be interesting," Clemont commented, "assuming that Gladion goes with Silvally, of course."

"Rotom must watch and observe; surely Silvally will have some special properties to it, being such a strange form of Pokémon." Serena wasn't sure what to make of it, but she could see just how stoic and determined Gladion was as he walked on to the stage. The portraits of the trainers now appeared on the screen above the stadium seats, with the referee continuing to rattle off the same set of rules as the last battle. It was time to see Ash's formidable rival spring into action. Next to her, he clenched his fist on his pants. That doubled when Silvally emerged from a pokeball, and even Pikachu tensed. Alongside them were a Stoutland, a Whimsicott and a Muk, the last one looking ever so strange and vibrantly colored.

The bell rang to signal the battle's beginning.

"Ho ho, Muk, use Gunk Shot," the one called Ikaika said. If Serena was honest, he looked a little like Conway (making Serena wonder just where the stalker had been all this time, if he was even there). It hardly mattered, as the trainer adjusted his glasses. His Muk slithered around the grassy field, turning it brown as he shot a large black-purple glob at the different opponents upon the grass.

"Whimsy, Tailwind!" the trainer named Purdy called. Heather didn't bother with that, ordering for her Stoutland to use a Giga Impact upon the Whimsicott. To Serena's surprise, Silvally was hanging back, though she supposed Gladion was a bit more tactical than Ash and Hau in choosing to not rush into battle. Wind blew from behind Whimsicott, carrying it into the air, increasing its speed, if Gary's comment was to be believed. Not that it mattered much as Stoutland barreled right into it, making it fly through the area faster than the Tailwind was carrying it. "Now, Cotton Spore!"

"Whimsi! Whimsi!"

"Well, while they play at things like that, use Acid Arm-" Ikaika's smug and laughing command was broken by Gladion flicking his hair and stepping forward.

"Tri Attack!" the blond snapped out. Silvally pounced on to the field, its plumage at the top of its head glowing three different colors. Ash and Clemont moved forward in their seats. Silvally's mouth opened and fired three different orbs out, whirling around like a spiral as they struck Muk's glowing body. The Poison type was pushed backwards, crying out. At the same time, small puffs of cotton were encircling the field, lowering each opponent's sense of mobility.

"Ah, this can't be! Use Gunk Shot again!" Ikaika ordered, clearly not liking or enjoying the sight of Silvally, like a brute enigma that couldn't be solved. Muk's mouth opened again, shooting the dark goo at Silvally, who hunkered down and sped away on Gladion's order to dodge.

"Fire Fang, Stoutland!" Heather called. Stoutland whipped away from Whimsicott, fangs burning with a bright and powerful fire as it leapt to chomp on the Gunk Shot. Once it had done so, the attack exploded with a rippling purple gas. Flicking her eyes over, Serena could see that Whimsicott was glowing a bright yellow, taking in energy from the sun.

"Multi-Attack!" Gladion called out, raising the arm with his Z-Ring on it. The ring appeared to be glowing white, just as Silvally was. It howled and then went charging straight at Muk. It wasn't alone, Stoutland also glowing with a yellow and purple light that was indicative of Giga Impact. Ikaika began laughing loudly.

"Ahaha! You've fallen into my trap! Gunk Shot!"

"Solar Beam!" Purdy called. All the attacks seemed to converge at once. The black globs slammed into both Silvally and Stoutland. Only Stoutland's attack was halted, though, as Silvally, still glowing, rammed into Muk and sent it flying to the edge of the field. Then, Whimsicott's beam of sun fired out, consuming all three of its opponents with rippling explosions of energy. Silvally stumbled to the side, but otherwise looked unharmed.

"Take Down, Stoutland!" Heather called, pointing right at Silvally. Gladion's partner may have been unharmed, but was still clearly recovering from the blow, right as Stoutland was barreling down at it. Ikaika was still cackling, ordering a Venom Drench in Stoutland's direction.

"Damn. Silvally, System Change!" Gladion cried, throwing his fist up and pressing on to his Z-Ring. Ash and Clemont were standing now, Rotom right between them. "Ghost!"

"Hrrrrah!" Silvally howled as its body practically changed shape, or at least coloration. It remained mostly the same, but its fur fully changed color, as did its fin, becoming almost ethereal. The Venom Drench rained upon Stoutland, but didn't slow it down, even as it charged forward…straight through Silvally. Gladion seemed to breathe in relief, but Silvally actually looked tired from it.

"What is this mighty Pokémon? What is this Silvally?" Kalas was calling out, especially with how intrigued and excited the crowd was at Silvally's sudden change. Serena was interested, as well, and just a little worried. Ash would have to face it to win. All the battles she'd fought with Gladion at her side had never prepared her to witness this, though she figured it was perhaps because there had been no need to.

"Now, Iron Head on Muk!" Gladion ordered, throwing his Z-Ring clad wrist out. It was glowing purple, the color of the Ghost crystal. Silvally said nothing, but charged forward, head gleaming with a bright silver before it slammed into the immobile Muk. For its rather malleable body, Muk seemed almost unable to keep up with the power presented. "Now, Crush Claw!"

"Fire a Moonblast!" Purdy cried in response. Gladion suddenly smirked, once more raising his fist and touching his Z-Ring. The power seemed to resonate with Silvally in a different way, just like before, glowing almost silver as Silvally's body changed a second time. It still swiped outward with the blood red claw that knocked Muk clear away towards Whimsicott, just as the pearlescent Moonblast made contact. Gladion's partner stood its ground as the explosion of  _that_  attack pushed it back a little. Silvally was looking tired, though not wounded. It was like Gladion had managed to mitigate the attack.

"Multi-Attack!" Gladion roared. Silvally howled once again while Ash and Clemont returned to their seats, Clemont clearly thinking hard. Gladion's steadfast Pokémon charged forward, now brimming with a silvery light as it slammed into both Muk and Whimsicott, knocking them to the edge of the arena, passed out.

"Whimsicott and Muk are unable to battle!" the referee called to the slightly confused cheers of the crowd surrounding them. Serena looked to Clemont, who appeared to have figured something out, but said nothing. Gladion had lowered his arm, though, as Heather appeared to be on the move.

"Last Resort!"

"Stou!" Stoutland barked, its body glowing a bright gold as it charged at Silvally. The attack made contact, and the Pokémon was knocked back by the strike, Silvally's claws digging into the field as Stoutland charged along with it. Soon, its gaze turned back to Gladion, who reached a hand up to his face and nodded. Silvally's claw came slamming out, glowing blood red and slicing into Stoutland, throwing it away. The Big-Hearted Pokémon whimpered, the insidiously unknown poison, and all of the earlier attacks, taking a toll on its body.

"Fire Fang! I think I've got this now!" Heather commanded, a little smirk on her face. Only, Gladion was smirking, as well. Stoutland shook its head to recover, wreathing its jaw in flames as it leapt at Silvally.

"Dodge, and use Tri Attack!" Clemont officially sat up in his seat while Rotom observed closely. Stoutland bore down upon Silvally, who dodged to the side, just barely, its steel-colored plumage lighting up in red, blue and yellow. Then it fired from the creature's mouth. All three orbs struck Stoutland and flung it across the battlefield where it rolled across the ground and remained, unmoving.

"Stoutland is unable to battle! Silvally and Gladion are the winners of this Battle Royal!" the referee called out. Despite not understanding everything that had happened in the battle, the crowd still cheered like crazy, even Kalas.

"I'm not sure how all of that battle went down, but it was exciting! Silvally, taking home an undisputed victory, though not without some help from its own opponents, of course," Kalas said. Serena turned in her seat to face Clemont with pursed lips. She momentarily noticed Ash looking down at Gladion, who briefly flicked his eyes upward before walking away from the battlefield.

"Clemont, what  _did_  happen?"

"A theory, but one I think is right from the research his father did, and from what I briefly saw during our battle against Team Skull on Poni," Clemont offered. "Silvally was created as a means to destroy the Ultra Beasts. Now that its full power is unleashed, in the same vein that the Z-Crystals, Rings and the power of the totems are connected with that same space, Silvally is connected, as well. It  _was_  created to kill them, after all. So, it resonates with Gladion's Z-Ring in a different way, changing its type via the Z-Crystals he has available. Though, I'm sure it could still use Z-Moves."

"Looks pretty tired, too," Bonnie noted, folding her arms. Clemont didn't answer that, but there was no need to. Clearly, changing its own type mid-battle put strain on its body and thusly ensured that it could only do it twice per battle, just like how one could only use Z-Moves once. The Pokémon wasn't Arceus, after all, Serena noted. Turning to Ash, though, he looked excited about facing the Pokémon whose power only grew and grew every time it was encountered.

"We'll beat it, right Pikachu?" Ash asked of his partner.

"Chupi!" Pikachu agreed, beating his electric sacs.

"Not if I beat it first," Hau said cheerily, having finally returned, naturally with malasadas in hand. They all stared at him as the match down below began. "What? All that hard work means that I've gotta eat."

"Whatever you say, Hau," Lillie said, patting him on the back. Serena just turned to watch the remaining matches.

Most of them turned out to be just as enjoyable as the first two, if not as strange from the lack of Silvally's shifting power. Serena could already tell Ash and Pikachu were thinking of ways to defeat Silvally in whatever their battle would be ahead. As if it wasn't hard enough with the creature being designed to kill Ultra Beasts, now there seemed to be an added layer of difficulty. She tried not to worry about that, however, instead paying attention to the various matches, filled with Z-Moves galore and various strategies on all different kinds of fields. There was even one contestant that treated it like a rock show challenge! His Dragonite was actually relatively impressive in taking on all three opponents at once (at the trainer's behest) and coming out victorious, though his Dragonite looked ready to keel over by the end of it.

Finally, as the second to last match was underway, Ash stood.

"All right, guys, here we go!" he said, grinning to all of them.

"Go get 'em, Ashy boy," Gary said with a smirk. Various other well wishes were thrown at him from his friends, and he took them all graciously. Serena faced front with his seat now empty. She just hoped there wouldn't be a repeat of the Kalos League with him turning up late. Thankfully, as the match before them wrapped up, and the field was exchanged for a wasteland of dust and stone, that worry was dispelled. Ash continued to walk forward on to the battlefield, Pikachu riding along with him.

"We're here for the end of the day now! The final Battle Royal, and the last trainer who will move on to the three-on-three matchups! Our competitors are…Kent, Kahula, Honi…and the famed Kalos Region hero, Ash Ketchum!"

Serena almost flinched a little at being reminded of the popularity they'd achieved (with Ash clearly being the most notable on the list). The crowd wasn't as affected by it, hardly knowing too much about his exploits, leading to them cheering for all the competitors; it  _was_  nice to see that Ash wasn't letting it get to him, in any case. He was just standing confidently, waiting for the battle to begin as the referee read off the obviously familiar set of rules.

He grinned. "Pikachu, I choose you!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cried with sheer determination, leaping from Ash's shoulder and on to the field. He wasn't alone, as the other opponents were calling out their Pokémon just the same: a Lilligant, an Absol and a Sandslash, definitely of the Alola variety with its blue, spiky body made of hard ice. Serena breathed in, waiting for the bell, and she looked up to see some other familiar faces watching the battle with genuine interest. In particular, Gladion was in his seat, leaning back with sharp eyes, while Paul was elsewhere, watching carefully. From the brief image on the screen, Kahili was deeply interested in the result, as well, as the bell began to clang.

"Pikachu, let's do this together with full power!" Ash called, throwing his fist forward. "Iron Tail!"

"Chuuuu pika!" Pikachu leapt into the battlefield, and Serena's eyes widened. With one swipe, he hit all three of the Pokémon that were converging in the center, blowing them back and making them flinch from the damage. Ash then quickly called out an Electro Ball, which Pikachu sent raining down on all three at once.

None of them could keep up with Pikachu's speed.

None of them could keep up with Pikachu's power.

From the very first second of the battle, Ash had taken control. Pikachu whirled around with Quick Attack on the unsuspecting foes before launching a Thunderbolt. Try as they might have, not a one was able to successfully hit Pikachu. Instead, they would only launch a Petal Dance at themselves, or a Psycho Cut that would miss Pikachu and hit Sandslash. It was a sight that Serena never thought she'd see. She didn't even need to describe it, because it was just that: indescribable.

That day, as Pikachu flitted around the battlefield, sending shocks and Iron Tails to all his opponents, the people at the Alola League had no doubt witnessed a  _miracle_. That Ash Ketchum stood there after building himself back together from his lowest point, was proof enough of that.

Where one might have given up, he persisted.

Where one might have lacked the strength, he found it.

And where one might have fallen…Ash Ketchum soared!

That first round of the inaugural Alola League made everyone drop their mouths in absolute awe. Even Silvally's performance couldn't come close to the power and bond of Ash and Pikachu. As their Z-Ring lit up, and Pikachu's thunder sparked into multi-colored lights that shook the stadium upon their impact, tears came into Serena's eyes as Lillie grabbed Hau like she couldn't believe it. Even behind them, Dawn and May were clapping hands while Brock nodded. Seamus was almost screaming himself hoarse, while even those like Gladion and Paul simply stared with actual widened eyes. Team Rocket even cheered loudly from where they were selling concessions! Serena could only look to Clemont as both cried, seeing how far he'd come, even from just that short-lived moment.

Within mere minutes, Pikachu stood atop the smoking foes he had faced, with nary a single scratch on him from the perfect commands Ash had given. The raven-haired trainer raised his fist to the sky, like a promise to everyone there. "Yeah! Pikachu, we're aiming for the top!"

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed, sending a thunderbolt into the air that made the whole stadium tingle; a cry of victory.

"I…I can't believe it! Ash Ketchum takes an effortless victory, earning his spot in the top sixteen and tomorrow's three-on-three battle events! This inaugural League will surely go down in HISTORY! And I'll be with you every step of the way! See you tomorrow, folks! Kalas out!"

With his declarative statement and the crowd's wild cheers over Ash's miracle, Serena sat back in her seat, placing a hand over her face as she cried tears of joy. And when everyone else's voices had covered hers while they talked amidst themselves, she whispered, "He's back…Our Pokémon Master is back…"

And from Ash's expression, he had no doubt heard her, as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: And so, the Alola League has begun! I mean, first I had to deal with some resolution and the final buildup, but then it all began with a bang! For Hau, I wanted to show that he's pretty awesome really. For Gladion, it was a case of confirming things about Silvally. In particular, I wanted to showcase that RKS System at work with my own lore of it, irrespective of the whole memory drives…which would be pointless in the anime system. Hope it all made sense. As for Ash, I didn't want to show his battle in detail because there was no need. The entire purpose of the battle was to show that this is Ash at his very best. That he could awe the crowd with Pikachu alone in the opening battle. Plus, he'll be getting the whole share of battles depicted in the chapters to come. Hope you enjoyed!
> 
> Now we're in the thick of the League and there are a few more exciting battles yet to come! So, until then, as usual, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	18. A Concert

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, the League continues here in full glory, and I hope you enjoy the matchup shown here! Onwards to Chapter 18!

Chapter 18

A Concert

"All right, Passimian, use Close Combat!" Ash cried, the surging cheers of the crowd rising with his own voice behind him. Passimian stamped the ground, throwing his berry behind him as he rushed towards his opponent, the one that would end that day's match.

"Starmie, use Ice Beam!" cried his opponent, a girl, who had proven to be a fun battle for the second day with her team of Arcanine, Clefable and the one she was currently commanding. Passimian ran to the side, rolling a little to avoid the chilling beam that froze the sands they were fighting on. It was too far away from the water that joined to the beach, not affecting the small sea on the battlefield. The ice struck the sands, freezing it entirely, but Passimian was too far away from that spot for it to make a difference.

"Pasi-si-si-si-sim!" Passimian cried. He reached Starmie and pummeled forward rapidly, slamming into every part of their opponent with punches and kicks until sending it flying forward with a final, rapid punch. It soon landed against the sands, which puffed up, obscuring its body for just a moment. The referee stepped forward.

"Starmie is unable to battle. Passimian is the winner, and the match goes to Ash," he called out. The crowd cheered out loudly for his victory, but Ash blocked them out. Passimian came running back, nabbing his berry.

"Pikachu pika!" Pikachu cheered, swaying back and forth cheerfully as Passimian returned. Ash grinned at him, holding a fist out to bump it against the lemur's.

"And there we have it folks!" Kalas cried out, his voice managing to rise above the cheers. "Ash Ketchum has proceeded into the quarterfinals with another undisputed victory. Lynn simply didn't stand a chance in an unmitigated three-zero victory. Toucannon, Lycanroc and Passimian all put in quite the bit of work for that victory!"

"He's right. You did a great job, Passimian!" Ash called to his partner, calling him back into his pokeball with a grin. He looked across to the girl he had faced, her face one of disappointment. However, when she looked up, he grinned at her. She was a good opponent, if someone who seemed to be in a little over her head. The battle had started strong with her, her Arcanine giving Toucannon some trouble, before quickly devolving when she started panicking over not having the control over the field that she thought she would. Even her use of Hydro Vortex in the last moments before Passimian's Close Combat had done nothing, especially when he'd mitigated it using Double Team. "You did a great job! Let's battle again someday!"

"Th-thank you!" the girl bowed, as if apologizing for her performance in battle. Ash just gave her another grin, indicating there was no need, and he turned around with Pikachu on his shoulder, deciding to leave the battlefield, which was switching out for the final battle of the day.

"We have one battle left folks, but the ones we've seen today have been nothing short of exciting!" Kalas called out. Ash nodded a bit as he proceeded into the hallways, passing by the boy that was coming towards him for his own battle. The two nodded, despite not knowing each other at all outside of being fellow competitors, but that didn't stop them from being amicable in the moment. "From the energetic Hau, to the engaging Ryuki. We've seen highs and lows in this round alone, including the enigmatic Silvally and Ash Ketchum's rather impressive shutout. That Continental Crush Z-Move he managed to pull off was stunning against Clefable!"

"Yes! League battles offer a different experience from those in the Ceremonies, and I've enjoyed seeing the different strategies employed," Maika commented, her voice echoing around the hall. Ash continued on, planning to meet up with his friends before getting his Pokémon checked at the Center, now that he'd made it to the quarterfinals. "Do you have any favorites, Harry?"

"I have a couple," Kalas admitted with a laugh. "But we'll save those for the aftershow! Right now, we've got this battle to watch!" The crowd liked that, their cheers shaking the hallways once again. Ash just shook his head, looking up to the screen in the hall as he continued on. They were both unfamiliar trainers to him, but as his pace slowed, and their battle between what looked like a Shiinotic and a Braviary began, he could start to read their movements. Neither of them seemed to have been those that had cleared Grand Trials. One looked overly cocky, and the other overly meek.

Right away, he could tell that the meek one with the Braviary was going to win the battle.

Though, Ash thought upon, Kalas  _had_  been right. There were some majorly intense battles that had been had that day, and quite a few favorites had been picked out from the crowd. Hau was one of them, his generally sunny attitude and battle aptitude making him well loved within the crowd. That was especially so with his more over-dramatic Pokémon, like Pipi. Gladion had been another, though Ash had this feeling it was mostly because of Silvally's mysterious shifting strategies that had everyone glued to him. Ash and Pikachu had both vowed to find a way around it.

Not that he wasn't popular, either, as the roar of the crowd during his battle appeared to suggest. From some of the talk Clemont and Korrina had been conversing about over last night's dinner, Ash's performance in the Battle Royal had instantly made him the trainer that everyone wanted to beat, and the rest of his team started proving themselves worthy of that claim today. Not that he paid attention, preferring to watch everyone else battle than to listen to gossip about himself. Especially the trainers Ryuki and Tristan. One seemed to have been a frontrunner in the preliminaries, while the former liked to turn everything into an event by setting some insane challenge for all his competitors. Today's had been that he would win with only two Pokémon. He managed it, but just barely, his prize Dragonite hanging by the skin of its teeth.

It made Ash really excited for the battles ahead.

"Nice battle,  _Ash_ ," said a voice as the raven-haired trainer turned out to the hallway. The final battle of the day was continuing on, one Pokémon on each side having gone down, but Ash was looking at Paul, a glass of soda in his hand. Ash blinked a little, unsure of what to say. In fact, neither seemed sure of what to say, just standing there. It took a moment for Ash to realize he'd been  _praised_  by Paul, as the boy whipped away. "Good to see you've gotten better. Can't have you dragging everyone behind in the battle ahead."

"Yeah, you just make sure you do your part," Ash snapped at the purple-haired boy. There was no tension or anger between them, though. They'd built that bridge between their feelings long ago. It made Ash look to the screen that displayed the currently seven trainers which were passing on to the quarterfinals. His eyes zeroed in on Gladion's portrait. Now he just had to hope the two of  _them_  could rebuild the thread that had snapped between them. Heaving in a breath, Ash quickly began jogging back towards his friends, even as the battle looked to be coming close to its conclusion. Pikachu kept an eye on the screen for him. That made him pick up the pace to run up to where his friends were waiting.

"Hey, sweet battle, Ash! We should celebrate making it into the quarterfinals, huh?" Hau called out the second the grinning boy caught sight of him. Ash laughed at that, moving over to his empty seat.

"If we celebrate every time one of you clears a round, we'll have over-celebrated by the time we're done," Lillie sighed out, stroking Komala's fur a bit as she did so. Ash sat down, staring at the combatants below, down to their final Pokémon in what looked like a close match. Ash frowned a bit, but still stuck by his initial prediction.

"You were really great," Serena noted, smiling at him. Ash grinned back, noticing that Bonnie and Rotom were out of their chairs, practically yelling at the combatants down below like crazed sports fans.

"Great? He was fantastic!" Seamus called out. His hand flew out and happened to high five against Sawyer's, the two boys obviously rather taken in their admiration of him. That made him flush a bit, not thinking he was deserving of that level of praise, but trying to take it modestly. "At this rate, you might sweep the entire thing!"

"I've already learned even more strategies," Sawyer exclaimed, twirling the bookmark of his on his finger, no journal to attach it to. Miette reached forward and ruffled his hair, like she thought it was adorable, but that hardly mattered to Ash. He appreciated all of the well-meaning words and praises of his friends that had come to watch the League, and turned back as the battle came to its conclusion.

His assessment had been dead on, and he was pleased to see that he had read both the trainers and the battle well enough. Now he just needed to read his own in the future.

"That's it, folks!" Kalas roared to the already screaming crowd in the heat of the moment. "Our eight moving on to the quarterfinals have been decided on! We've seen some great battles today, but there are still more to come tomorrow! Four three-on-three battles filled with such intensity and heat, it'll warm up this icy mountain with a summer's breeze! And on the screen are the matchups for tomorrow!"

Ash leaned forward, gazing at the screens, while Hau did the same. The eight pictures swirled around before suddenly pairing off into four distinct groupings. Ash looked along, noting that Gladion had the first match of the day against an unknown female trainer, followed by the boy Tristan having his own match, and then Hau would battle before Ash's own matchup. He was paired up with the trainer named Ryuki, but when he looked around the stadium, he couldn't find the eccentric boy.

"Well, that was fun and exciting for the day!" Dawn groaned out, standing and stretching from her seat. "Think I'll go and look at some more of the shops. You want to come, Piplup?"

"Luppip!" Piplup said, bouncing across the chairs to join Ash and Pikachu.

"We'll take care of him, Dawn" Ash assured her, especially as Serena reached up to take Piplup into her arms. He settled comfortably enough, if just so he could play with Pikachu. "You can meet us at the Pokémon Center for some dinner."

"Sounds good!" Dawn cried, and she started running off. She actually wasn't alone, with Aria, Miette and  _Astrid_ , of all people, trailing behind her. Bonnie looked like she wanted to go as well, but opted for staying behind, regardless. Probably to keep Rotom in check, Ash felt. Feeling like he'd wasted his time sitting down, Ash stood once more and went back into the flow of the crowd that was exiting out of the stadium, this time with his friends. After all of the battles, which seemed to be much longer than those at the Hope Leilani, the sun was sinking and the stars were peeking out.  _Even closer now,_  Ash couldn't help but think.

He shook it away, thinking on the battle with Ryuki that would happen tomorrow. He had a decent read on the boy, but liked the element of surprise that the eccentric rocker seemed to bring to the table. It was sure to make his next match thrilling and exciting. Knowing that, he made sure to get straight to Nurse Joy and hand over his three Pokémon's pokeballs.

"We'll have them taken care of in a moment, so please wait," the nurse said, backing up and heading to the treatment room. Ash just turned around, seeing Serena and Clemont finding a table, while it looked like Bonnie had dragged Lillie and a furiously sketching Maka to a juice stand in the Center. Likewise, Ash could swear he saw Team Rocket running outside to sell their goods to those leaving the stadium. Chuckling, Ash looked down at a playing Pikachu, Dedenne and Piplup, just as a strong, almost discordant, noise from a guitar entered his ears while the doors to the Center opened.

"Yeah! Sun setting on the Alolan sky! Will tomorrow live or tomorrow die!" the boy there rocked out and Ash raised an eyebrow at the sight of his next opponent. "The night is covered, glitterin' with stars! That battle that we're called for, it ain't very far! Uh huh huh!"

"Mister Ryuki!" snapped Nurse Joy angrily, suddenly stopping the rocker from tossing his red and white hair around with abandon. He stopped, guitar almost dropping from his hold as he blinked, patting his red vest like he'd mistaken something. "I understand you're an entertaining competitor, but there are resting Pokémon here. Did you have any you'd like me to look over?"

"Oh yeah…sorry, ma'am. Just got the urge to rock, ya know?" Ryuki chuckled out, walking over and placing two pokeballs in the nurse's hands. Then his head turned and he flicked his hair back. "Yo, you're Ash Ketchum! Sweet, man!"

"Uh…what?" Ash asked with bewilderment, but noticed the extended hand and took it in greeting. They were obviously trainers standing on opposite sides, watching each other the entire League, but it felt good to connect with his opponent before battling.

"You're one of the guys to beat. Just like me," Ryuki said, pointing to himself with a grin. "We'll have a good battle, yeah?"

"Sure hope so," Ash admitted. The boy was rather friendly, if a little out there, especially with the way his body was moving in such a strange fashion, like he was dancing to his own songs. It was a slightly awkward silence that followed, filled with other trainers, mostly those that had been eliminated that day, coming into the Center for dinner. Both of the boys just remained there, with Ryuki watching Pikachu playing. A chime came from the backroom after moments had passed.

"Ash, Ryuki, your Pokémon are all healed up," Nurse Joy said, approaching the two trainers with all of their pokeballs. They quickly thanked her and took them before facing one another. "Good luck on your battle tomorrow, both of you."

"Thanks, Nurse Joy," Ryuki said, before grinning over at Ash. The raven-haired trainer was already on his way over to the large table his friends had put together for their dinner, and Ryuki kept going along with him, fiddling with his guitar a bit. "So, you're totally not from Alola, am I right?"

"Uh-huh," Ash noted to the boy as they walked. Serena was waving at him, and even smiling at Ryuki. The boy winked at her, though Ash could tell he didn't mean anything lascivious by it. Seemed like something he just did to everyone.

"Me, too, man!" Ryuki said excitedly. He went to go grab his guitar and strum out a tune once again, but Nurse Joy's sudden cough and glare put a stop to that. Bonnie's little group was returning from the juice stand by this point. "I was on my solo gig tour from Unova, right? Fell in love with the region and couldn't stop myself from doing all the trials and Grand Trials. My manager hated it, but what a rush, man!"

"Oh, so you're from Unova?" Ash asked of the trainer. He grinned at him, brushing a mop of hair out of his eyes. Ash had never heard of him before, though, for someone who said he was on tour. Ryuki didn't seem to mind, wanting to be there more for the fun and the challenge.

"Oh, yeah! Most rockin' region in the world! Only gotten a few popularity points there recently thanks to my rival in rock, Roxie. Though, Alola doesn't seem all that impressed with my soul, but that's okay," Ryuki admitted. He threw a lopsided grin. "But man, League isn't the only reason I'm here. I'm totally in for that big battle. How about you?"

"So, you answered the League summons?" Ash asked, surprised. He had begun to think that only trainers he knew before visiting Alola would be invited. Knowing that there were other trainers just as willing to fight during the Day of Stars heartened him. Ryuki chuckled out, while Ash noticed Maka behind him, peering suspiciously all of a sudden.

"You didn't think a rockin' star like me would abandon people in need! No sir! 'Course, that's the real reason I'm here. It's only that now's the time to focus on the League! So, let's just make this battle a good one. You beat me, and I'll throw in a ticket to my next concert!" Ryuki said with his perpetual grin. It was like Hau, but more cocky than just pure enthusiasm. He finally began to walk away, raising a hand. "Tomorrow we'll go all out, and I'll win without switching mid-battle."

And there was the boy's challenge. Ash just nodded, and Ryuki walked off and out of the Pokémon Center. He watched him go, feeling the encounter was a little random, but decided to otherwise not think about it. He'd never thought that trainers he could meet once would either go on to, or have already been part of, their upcoming strike on the Ultra Beasts.

"Um…what exactly is going on?" Maka questioned, for once not scribbling away. Everyone around the table froze in their movements and looked to her. "That guy mentioned something about a big battle coming up. Is it part of the League?"

"Not…not exactly," Serena noted. Maka tilted her head and placed hands on her hips, almost like she was demanding to find out what they were talking about.

"Well, then what? You guys are acting super weird, and there're all these other people hanging with you that I never met before," Maka pointed out, like she'd just realized this. "I didn't want to say anything, but now…"

"Maybe we should explain," Clemont chuckled out, looking rather nervous. Ash just decided to let them, especially with Serena being far closer to Maka than he was. It allowed him to walk away a moment, towards the frosted glass and out to the stars. They really  _were_  knitting together. Every night, he kept hoping it was just a figment of his imagination, but he knew that a battle was coming no matter how much he tried to deny it.

Maka let out a sharp shout of surprise and Ash heard the fluttering of paper to the ground, causing him to chuckle as he stared upwards. Three more days. Just three days. Although Ash knew he had to keep his eyes on the battle tomorrow, and all the ones to come, he still set one of his gazes beyond them, towards the Ultra Space. Turning towards his friends and a suddenly frantic Maka, Ash breathed out, "We'll settle it soon, Guzma."

* * *

It was a snowy day outside, once again, as the quarterfinals of the Lanakila Conference began that next day. Despite that, the energy inside of the stadium was as warm as could be, even without a bright shining sun overhead. Ash, himself, could also feel that intensity revving up to choose those who would be moving on to the semifinals. That was still the case with him, too, bouncing his leg as he watched the first battle of the day taking place on the mountainous battlefield down below. It was already reaching its climax, but Ash was staring intently.

Gladion's opponent had actually seemed to be a slight challenge for him, causing him to pull out his Honchkrow and a Pokémon that Rotom identified as an Araquanid. That Pokémon did help him to turn the tide of battle, though like usual, it was Silvally that had managed to truly clinch it. Either way, despite Ash already being well aware of the fact, the whole battle made Gladion seem fallible to others that were looking, struggling to keep up with certain pressures unless Silvally was used.

On the other hand, the two winners proceeding to the semifinals from the next two rounds didn't seem quite so crippled across the board. Tristan had a relatively balanced team, despite his surprisingly young age. He almost reminded Ash of Sawyer…but  _far_  less analytical. He seemed to just enjoy his Pokémon, his Tauros helping to make short work of things with its bullheaded approach to battle. His only failing, it seemed, was that he didn't always command his Pokémon, and instead let them work powerful moves on their own. It was something Korrina flinched at.

Hau, on the other hand, showed great balance to his team, allowing Ash a chance to see yet another member of his team. Not that he hadn't seen it before, but it was obvious now that the Eevee from their first battle had evolved.

"Oh, his Glaceon is so pretty!" Lillie clapped out excitedly at Hau's Pokémon on the field; although, to Ash, it was his indication that he needed to get moving for his own match. To that, he stood and said nothing but a "wish me luck" to his friends, before exiting the audience section and going along the hallways. His mind was actually rather busy with thoughts of the opponents ahead as he walked. Despite some of Gladion's problems in managing teamwork between his Pokémon, it was obvious that the blond was still one of the top competitors to beat at the Conference, and Silvally was tricky as well. Clemont had remarked more than once that it had yet to fall in battle.

"Well, let's just focus on this battle for now, right, Pikachu?" Ash asked of his partner. Pikachu nodded, scampering on top of his head as they walked towards the hall where the waiting room for the battlers was. He felt no need to use it, however, merely listening as the crowd cheered with much abandon at what sounded like Hau's victory.

"And he's done it! This League's Sunshine Boy, filling the entire stadium with smiles, has proceeded to the semifinals!" Kalas roared out, to much of the crowd's adoration. Hau had really seemed to grow into a favorite with his usual peppy attitude.

"Pipi is a force to be reckoned with, right alongside Hau's Incineroar," Maika commented as well, making more cries emerge within the crowd. "Still, his whole team seems to be very capable. I'm very much looking forward to the semifinals, now."

"So am I, Maika. So am I! But we still have one more battle to round out that group of four trainers," Kalas called, and the crowd seemed to get even more excited. A shuddering sounded out, indicating that the battlefield was sinking and Ash walked forward as Hau emerged from the site of those battlefields at the other end of the hall.

"Nice one, Hau!" Ash called, reaching up to give a high five to the boy. The Alolan native was still grinning, though it dropped for a second, and only that.

"Thanks, we're having lots of fun," he responded the second after he put the grin back up. "Didn't think that the League would be so much fun…or so difficult. Right, Pipi?"

"Rai rai," Pipi agreed. Ash chuckled; it really was both of those things. Hau clapped him suddenly on his back.

"Oh well, do your best! Maybe we'll face off in the finals!" Hau said, running off with Pipi, who looked particularly exhausted if her low altitude was the judge, zipping off down the hallway after him. Ash faced forward again, affixing his face with a look of determination as he walked forward carefully.

"And here we come to it, the final battle of the quarterfinals; one that's sure to be intense: Ash versus Ryuki!" Kalas called out.

"YEAH! ASH!"

"Rock our souls, Ryuki!" The crowd seemed to really be excited about two supposed heavyweights squaring off against one another. Both trainers proceeded forward before they just stopped at the edge of their platforms, looking across the great chasm of the stadium floor to nod at one another. There was another shuddering as the field began to rise.

"This will most certainly be an exciting battle, I have to say, and from the way the Kahunas and Professor Kukui are reacting, I'd say that they feel the same," Kalas laughed out. Ash didn't let that kind of statement get to him; before him was a trainer who wanted a real challenge, and he was going to give it to him. The field finished rising, showcasing a simplistic dirt battlefield. "Our match is set to begin on the most basic of basic battlefields!"

The referee stepped forward on to the basic dirt arena. "This will be a three-on-three battle between Ash and Ryuki, with the winner decided when all three of one side's Pokémon have been defeated!"

"All right! Rock on, Exeggutor!" Ryuki cried out, tossing a pokeball while he furiously strummed his guitar. The pokeball burst with light, and Ash was surprised (yet not) at the towering tree appearing above him, stomping on the dirt ground. Ash grinned.

"Passimian, I choose you!" he yelled, and the Teamwork Pokémon emerged with a bellowing cry. The crowd cheered even more than usual, reaching a level they hadn't during the past three battles. The referee lowered his hand and called out for them to begin. "We'll take the first movie, Ryuki! Double Team!"

"Passi! Passi! Passi!" Passimian called out, his doubles sprouting up all around the area to cover the field. Ryuki jammed loudly on his guitar with the enthusiasm he'd shown yesterday in the Pokémon Center.

"Aw yeah! Exeggutor, use your Leaf Storm!" he called out, sending a rocking chord out from his guitar. Exeggutor's clearly sentient tail whipped outward, surrounded by leaves that blasted out in a whirling cyclone, practically silent from not hearing the Pokémon call out its attack; after all, its head was too high up. The leaves made impact with the clones, clearing them away in wide swathes as the tail swept along.

"Use Shadow Ball!" Ash called, punching forward. The real Passimian was on the move, dashing to the side as his berry pulsed with inky shadows. He reared back and tossed it for the large base, beneath the long, skinny neck. It sailed forward, impacting powerfully. Exeggutor stumbled backwards.

"Aw, no! Put up a Reflect! Put up your shields! Then use your Egg Bomb, to make a great meal!" Ryuki sang out, doing a little jump as he riffed on his guitar. It was an odd kind of battle, but still seemed like a fun one to Ash. Ryuki wanted to push himself, challenge himself, while have fun at the same time. Ash could easily oblige him for that.

"Toooor!" Exeggutor's voice could be heard now as a bright blue shield appeared. Then there was a loud shaking noise and suddenly, large white shapes began dropping from up above, raining straight for Passimian's head.

"Use Close Combat and counter it right away!" Ash called out, clenching a fist and pumping it upwards. Passimian dug his foot into the dirt, taking a clear stance as his berry dropped for a moment. The eggs came closer, looking ready to explode.

"Simian!" Passimian cried out as he punched forward rapidly. The fist smacked the first egg away, harmlessly, to the sides of the field where it exploded. Then his leg kicked up at another while his other arm beat at yet another. Finally, his gaze locked with Ash's and the silent command came through a nod. Passimian struck one last falling one just as it was within range. The egg flew backwards, striking Exeggutor and blasting it somewhat across the field.

The cry from Exeggutor at least confirmed one thing to Ash: Alolan Exeggutor weren't Psychic types. It wasn't able to control the egg.

"Heyo, Exeggutor, Dragon Hammer!" At Ryuki's command, Exeggutor's long neck began to move rapidly, whipping around this way and that as it glowed a powerful green. Then it slammed right down.

"Block it!" Ash cried. Passimian swiped his berry from the ground and reached up, crossing his arms as Exeggutor slammed down. The lemur's feet sunk a little into the ground, and he definitely flinched a little from the brunt of the attack, using his berry to deflect some of the damage, but otherwise seemed completely fine in the moment. "Now, grab on to the neck!"

"Simi!" Passimian called out. He rapidly uncrossed his arms and grabbed ahold of Exeggutor's neck as the creature began to raise itself back up. It made it within perfect striking range.

"Now, Shadow Ball!" Ash called. Passimian reared back, his berry once more brimming with shadowy wisps before he slammed it atop Exeggutor's head, up high. The Coconut Pokémon cried out, staggering a little from the blow, though it clearly didn't do as much as it could have, thanks to the Reflect in place.

"Use your Leaf Storm, Exeggutor! Blow them away! Yeaaaah!" Ryuki strummed out. In accordance with his strumming, leaves surrounded Exeggutor's tail, only this time they began to travel along its entire body, sailing upward through Exeggutor's neck and head, before then blasting outward. Passimian was flung away with a cry, sailing through the air before beginning to descend downward. He was still within range of his target, though. Ash did a slight jump as Pikachu cheered onward.

"Use Brick Break!" Passimian spun his large body in midair and his fist came screaming out. It was glowing with a blinding white light as it pierced through the Reflect. The blue shield flickered for a moment and then broke apart, right in time for Passimian's strike to hit Exeggutor's soft neck, causing the Grass type pain. They were back in the game again.

"Dragon Hammer!" Ryuki called out, no longer on his guitar. He was still grinning and having fun, though, and that was a plus for Ash. Instead of slamming down, Exeggutor's long neck simply came sailing out with the same green glow, before it nailed Passimian in the chest and tossed him back on to the dirt with no remorse. Despite taking the attacks thrice in a row, Passimian stood, stomping the ground with his berry and a grin.

"Ready for more, Passimian?" Ash asked of his partner. Passimian turned back with a slight grin on his face. Ash drew his fist closer. "Great, use Double Team and get close!"

"Knock 'em all away with your big Egg Bombs!" Exeggutor began shaking rapidly and the exploding eggs came raining down upon the battlefield. Passimian was also appearing all around the battlefield, each moving to converge towards the Grass type before them. The eggs began making contact with the copies and the field, exploding and leaving small pockmarks in the ground as a result. Passimian was close now.

"Use Close Combat on the neck!" came Ash's next cry, his fist swinging outwards and uncurling itself. The real Passimian dashed into the fray as another Egg Bomb made contact with the cluster of Passimian clones and exploded, blasting them all away.

"Passi passi!" Passimian chittered out and his fist slammed forward into Exeggutor's neck. He then flipped upward, slamming his feet into it, instead, with a powerful kick. Exeggutor was nearly knocked off balance, neck swaying this way and that with no reason to it. The more the flying fists and kicks hit upon Exeggutor, the more fatigued it was looking.

"Ah, can't take this forever! We gotta stop those blows! Reflect!" Ryuki said. He swung his guitar around to his back, flicking his hair a little. In the crowd, it sounded like there were some girls swooning. The blue shield began to erect itself as a paling once again.

"Break it with Brick-"

"Nah, man! You're too close, Leaf Storm!"

"Look at that speed!" Kalas cried out. He had good reason to. Exeggutor's tail flew out, already encircled with swirling, cutting leaves that then shot out powerfully and blasted Passimian away. "How will Ash respond to this enduring storm of foliage?"

Ash narrowed his eyes. Exeggutor wouldn't make it easy to approach, not with the tornado of leaves currently blocking access. Passimian skidded along the ground, stopping himself with his berry. Ash looked, and quickly things stopped. He saw an opening. It would be quickly covered up and would need exactly precise movements. That was something Passimian could pull off. "Shadow Ball through the leaves!"

"Sima!" Passimian cried. To anyone watching, he would have moved incredibly swiftly, and it seemed that was what Kalas was commenting on, as well. But to Ash, he knew that Passimian was simply acting with pinpoint accuracy. He found the spot that Ash had noticed, as well, and with a quick shot, sent his shadowy orb sailing right through the leaves. In seconds, it made impact with their opponent's body, causing Exeggutor's feet to slip on the dirt.

"They may have Reflect up, but we won't lose this opportunity! Let's go!" Ash cried out. He reached his arms up and crossed them. Exeggutor was struggling to get back up, its feet slipping further and bringing its head crashing down to the field, leaving the neck and top utterly exposed. Ash uncrossed his arms and began punching forward. Passimian did the same, amber-colored hands and fists flying forth as that similarly colored glow began to surround his entire body. "All-Out Pummeling!"

"Papapapapapapapassi!" Passimian cried as the amber glow finally reached its zenith. Then he charged forward, shooting across the ground as his real fist slammed into Exeggutor. The area around its neck exploded, shooting the Pokémon across the field. It might have been a waste to use a Z-Move so early, but it was clear that no matter how many times he would break that shield. Exeggutor would just put it right back up. Passimian leapt back, the glow fading away as the dust cleared.

"Exeggutor is unable to battle! Passimian is the winner!" the referee cried. On the scoreboard overhead, the picture of Exeggutor that had appeared grayed out.

"Aw man! Thought we had a good gig goin' there!" Ryuki cried out, throwing his hands to his hair and messing it up with some agitation. He sighed as his fangirls sounded to swoon, and he returned his Pokémon. "Nice one, Ash. You're as tough as the rumors around that gathering of people a week ago said."

"Am I? Didn't even know things were said about me!" Ash admitted, rubbing at his nose a little. Ryuki's eyes closed as he laughed with him. The other trainer was clearly good-natured, if a little stubborn; just like him.

"Well, this is already turning out to be an exciting battle, with Ash catching the upper hand," Kalas told the crowd, who were all waiting with bated breath for the next Pokémon to be called. "Can he keep it, though? Let's find out!"

"Oh, we'll find out! I'm carryin' here, my Unova dreams! He may not be my strongest, but he'll make ya screeeeeeam! Haxorus, rock out!" Ryuki tossed his next pokeball onto the field, revealing the form of a Haxorus, standing tall. It quickly saw Passimian and let out a great roar that could have almost deafened the stadium. "Dragon Claw, Haxorus!"

"Close Combat!" Ash called out. Passimian nodded, chittering a little before running at Haxorus. He was moving slower than before, Ash noticed; no doubt due to having taken those earlier blows. What they needed to focus on now, though, was taking down the reflective paling that Ryuki had managed to leave up.

"Haxoh!" Haxorus growled loudly, its claws glowing that bright green which Ash was all too familiar with. It slashed forward, meeting dead on with the fist of Passimian's. They soon became a whirling clash of claws and fists. Passimian dodged to the side while Haxorus ducked, the green whirling with the black and white fur of Passimian. Eventually, the two were locked in place with their upper appendages. Passimian's leg began moving to kick upwards.

"Focus Blast!" Ryuki called, having grabbed his guitar and twirling it around. Haxorus' other claw lost its green glow, a yellow orb forming in its palm. Before Passimian's kick could hit, Haxorus flung the orb out, slamming him in the chest. He skidded backwards. "Dragon Dance, my fine, scaly friend!"

"Use Brick Break!" Ash cried out. Passimian leapt forward, fist glowing powerfully. As he did so, Haxorus gave a great cry, surrounding its body with a red and pink aura that misted off. Nevertheless, Passimian struck home, right on top of Haxorus' head. The shield shattered with it, but it turned out to be too little, too late.

"Yeaaaah! Night Slash!" Ryuki cried out, not even bothering with his guitar. Haxorus seemed to grin, and before Passimian could jump back, one of its claws glowed a deep purple and slashed forward, right through Passimian. The berry fell from his hand and dropped to the ground as Haxorus dashed past. Passimian stiffened a moment and then fell, collapsing on the field.

"Passimian is unable to battle! Haxorus wins!" the referee called out. Ash sighed. Passimian had really put up a great fight, and had managed to get the shield down for the next fighter. He reached up and called his Pokémon back, thanking his enduring simian.

"Just like that, Ryuki has evened the score! A shame that Ash Ketchum can no longer claim an absolute shutout, but I'm sure there will be many more exciting battles to be had from him this round, regardless! How, now, will  _this_  battle go from here?" Kalas cried out excitedly. "I can't wait to find out!"

"Nice one, Ryuki! Though I'm starting to wonder if all you have are Dragon types," Ash laughed out. Ryuki looked up and grinned, before taking his guitar and starting to jam upon it.

"Aw yeah! Dragon types are the best, there's no denyin'! They're all super strong and some are even flyiiiiiiiin'!" The crowd appeared to love the song from their immensely loud cheering. Ash had to let out a laugh; this was an opponent he was really having fun with…but he wouldn't concede the victory to him, either.

"Well, then, we'll just build on what Passimian started with a dragon of our own. Kommo-o, I choose you!" Ash cried, sending his next pokeball out and calling forth the Scaly Pokémon. He looked as ready to battle as Passimian, staring down the dragon opposite him. They were eyeing each other all too carefully. Ash made the first move. "Sky Uppercut!"

"Kohm!" Kommo-o cried. He was dashing forward, quicker than ever before. His fist sailed upward, glowing a bright white as it snapped into Haxorus' jaw and sent it up into the air with a shudder.

"Aw, yeah! Gets your blood boiling! Dragon Claw!" Haxorus snapped to attention in midair, making its claws glow a bright green. It then slashed downward, hitting Kommo-o upon the head. He stumbled a bit, blasted back across the field by the second claw impacting him with a swipe upwards. "Now, Dragon Dance!"

"Hit it with Clanging Scales!" Ash ordered swiftly. Kommo-o stopped his sliding and his scales began to quiver with a loud sound that even offset Ryuki's guitar. The scales flew out with the soundwaves, soaring forward towards Haxorus' glowing body. Ash's eyes narrowed, only imagining how much stronger the Axe Jaw Pokémon was now.

"Dodge it!" Ryuki called. Haxorus moved faster than Ash had expected, though he should have imagined it, thanks to the numerous Dragon Dances that the Pokémon had used. Either way, Haxorus had dodged the attack, causing the scales to impact harmlessly upon the ground. "Now, fire that Focus Blast, and into your fantastic Night Slash!"

"X-Scissor, let's go!" Ash called out, punching his fist forward. Kommo-o didn't panic; there was no need for him to. He just crossed his arms and began surging forward. The scales grew back into place on his body as Haxorus launched the yellow orb at Kommo-o. Then the Axe Jaw Pokémon's claws glowed a deadly purple and it slashed forward. The Focus Blast nearly made contact, but Kommo-o sliced through it with his crossed fists, and met the Night Slash head on, a purple shockwave resulting from the attacks.

"Whoo! These two dragons are fierce and going at it! Exciting to watch a combination of deadly and precise strikes!"

"Dragon Claw!" Ryuki called, jamming on his guitar to send the discordant soundwaves out. Ash wasted no time in giving a countering order.

"Poison Jab!" he shouted. Kommo-o and Haxorus separated briefly, and then, both ran for each other, one's claws erupting with green fury while the other's glowed purple. Kommo-o pummeled forward, blocking the slashes that Haxorus was making. Every hit, while being blocked, still seemed to be wearing them both down bit by bit.

"Haxa!" Haxorus finally cried, his claw coming from underneath Kommo-o's defenses and slashing upwards, sending the Scaly Pokémon flying back a little.

"Don't worry, use Sky Uppercut and blast it to the sky!" Kommo-o snapped to attention in seconds, the glow of his fist changing from purple to a blinding white. He slammed a foot upon the ground, stopping himself from sliding and brought his fist raging upwards. This time, instead of just snapping into Haxorus' jaw, the Sky Uppercut impacted with its whole body and flung it up into the air. "Now, Clanging Scales!"

"Block 'em with Night Slash, aw yeah!" Ryuki cried. Both Pokémon were acting instantly. Kommo-o's scales quivered with their sharp, eerie noise and shot out, the eerie soundwaves enveloping the air above, alongside the scales. Haxorus attempted to recover, claws glowing a deep purple before slashing outward at all of the scales. It was unable to block all of them, some of them exploding with soundwaves across its body's surface.

"X-Scissor, straight up!" Ash called to his Pokémon.

"Kommo!" Kommo-o cried out, crossing his arms with the purple cross shape and leaping up into the air. Ryuki seemed to call for a counter attack, but Ash couldn't hear it over the exploding scales still battering Haxorus. It became obvious what it was seconds later, though, as both of Haxorus' claws glowed green. Kommo-o slammed into one of them, driving Haxorus further upwards in the air, only for the other to come screaming out and swiping across Kommo-o. He fell, slamming into the ground and shaking his head, bruises over his body.

"Now, let's amp up one last time with Dragon Dance!"

"Not a chance! Kommo-o, Clanging Scales!" Ash shouted. Haxorus' body was misting again, but Kommo-o was already moving, taking a single step forward as his scales quivered with their noise and shot out yet again. In the middle of its move, Haxorus was entirely inert and could do nothing but watch as the scales impacted, exploding all around its body with sound.

"No! Haxorus!" Ryuki yelled, but from the cheers of the crowd, one could already tell that this particular matchup was over. The smoke cleared, but Haxorus was already dropping, hitting the ground with a rather unseemly thud.

"Haxorus is unable to battle! Kommo-o is the winner!" the referee called out, pointing to Ash's side of the field. The raven-haired trainer threw his fist in the air as a result. Just one Pokémon left to move on to the semifinals! Though, it also meant it would be the toughest, and one he'd have to be very careful about.

"Nice job, Haxorus. You leave it to Dragonite! He'll win the battle," Ryuki said, calling his Pokémon back. Kommo-o looked backwards, himself, grinning just like Passimian had. Ash nodded. His loyal dragon, despite all of the attacks, was looking a little better off than Passimian had after taking down his own opponent, but already, Ash's mind was turning to the beast he knew he'd be facing. Ryuki's specialty in Dragon types (he could already imagine Iris freaking out in the stands) could only bode ill for Kommo-o the longer the battle went on. "Gotta say, man, you are one top competitor. No one's driven me down to three so far here, obviously, but Dragonite will make up the difference! So, let's rock ouuuuut!"

"And there it is!" Kalas cried to the roaring crowd as Ryuki's pokeball exploded with light to reveal the form of a Dragonite. "Ryuki's heralded Dragonite! The one that clinched victories for him in the last two rounds and is quite the beast! Without a Z-Move to use as a counter, how will Ash handle this? Or will Ryuki claim victory instead?"

"Let's find out," Ash said with a little grin in Ryuki's direction. "Get in there with a pummeling Poison Jab!"

"Take it with a Thunder Punch, yeaaaaaah!" Kommo-o ran across the field, arms glowing a deep purple. Dragonite grunted and flew forward with crackling fists of lightning. Kommo-o leapt up to meet Dragonite and their fists connected. Dragonite whipped around with his wings, punching at the Scaly Pokémon's sides, but Kommo-o's other fist flew out to equally match it.

"Hit it with your tail to get the advantage!" Ash called. Kommo-o cried out and slapped his tail into Dragonite, the appendage jangling as it did so. Then his purple fist struck out, slamming into Dragonite's stomach, its face paling a little. Dragonite's fist also came out to strike Kommo-o and send shocks pulsing through his body.

"Now, give it a Hurricane!" Ryuki yelled, jamming on his guitar. Dragonite flew back, affected by the poison now in its system as it began to beat its wings furiously. The gale was created in moments, but Kommo-o wasn't moving. Ash grimaced, realizing his Pokémon was paralyzed, and there was no way to stop the attack. The horrendous gale struck out, battering into Kommo-o and driving him across the field where he landed on the dirt. "Nice one, Dragonite!"

"Ryu!" Dragonite grunted out. Kommo-o began to stand, looking weak after the super-effective strike. Unfortunately, Ash also noticed the look in its eyes, scrunched in like he was ready to punch himself. It was a difficult decision to make, but Ash held out his pokeball.

"Return, Kommo-o!" he called. The crowd began to murmur at the sudden roster change, and even Ryuki looked surprised. "Sorry, you did a great job, but I don't want you hurt any more than you have to be; not with paralysis  _and_ confusion. We'll finish the rest."

"Pika pika chu chu," Pikachu insisted, climbing up to touch Kommo-o's pokeball and then going straight back to Ash's feet. The raven-haired trainer grinned, placing the pokeball back on his belt while grabbing the next one.

"Lycanroc, I choose you!" Ash cried. As Lycanroc emerged, her image appeared on the screen in the large picture. Ryuki seemed to grin a little more, like the battle had just taken an interesting turn.

"Ash has made an interesting switch, but it still leaves him with an advantage over Ryuki! Who will pull off the victory?" Kalas called dramatically to the listening crowd on the edge of their seats. Ash grinned.

"Lycanroc, Stone Edge!" Lycanroc howled loudly, raising her front paws up and then bringing them down with a slam on to the ground. The stones began to race out in a straight line for Dragonite with immense speed.

"All right, Dra-gon-ite! Hyper Beam, do it right! Yeaaaah!" Ryuki was singing out. His fangirls were tittering over that, but Dragonite was just acting on the instruction. It opened its mouth and blasted out the dark beam, the force pushing its own body back slightly. The beam consumed the rocks that had been formed, barreling through all of them with immense force and speed.

"Accelerock!" Ash called, swiping his hand out. Before the Hyper Beam could even reach Lycanroc's location, she had darted to the side, swift enough that she was barely even seen with her glowing light, other than the dust behind her paws. She reached Dragonite in seconds and pounced, slamming into its side as the Hyper Beam finished. The rocks all crumbled away.

"Thunder Punch, come on!" Ryuki jammed out, strumming on his guitar as he whirled his hair around. Dragonite shook its head, and its fist was crackling with powerful electricity. It punched outward before Lycanroc could recover from her attack. The attack hit her jaw, throwing her away. She easily used all four legs to recover herself.

"Stone Edge, one more time!" Ash called. Lycanroc had clearly understood his command, because while she howled and the stones all erupted, they weren't in the straight lines they had been before, but rather as a shield, similar to a move Serena had used a couple days ago or so.

"Do-ra-gon Ruuuuuush!" Ryuki screamed. Dragonite flapped backwards, beginning to glow a powerful blue. It then charged forward, looking draconic in nature. There was no doubt it would slam through the defensive barrier erected before them. Too bad for Dragonite that Lycanroc was faster.

"Dodge it!" he yelled. Dragonite came soaring through, slamming into the stones and utterly breaking them apart, gravel flying up into the air. Lycanroc had already dodged to the side, completely avoiding the attack and was already lunging forward, as if in anticipation. "Thunder Fang!"

"Lycrrr!" she growled, her maw opening wide. Sparks brimmed at the edge of it, large fangs made of pure electricity forming. Pikachu cheered, jumping up and down as Lycanroc reached Dragonite and sunk her teeth into its wings. The Dragon Pokémon convulsed, not only from the attack, but from the poison that was still taking a toll on its body.

"Come on, let's get rid of it with some Hurricane!" Dragonite's other wing began to flap rapidly at Ryuki's command, and soon after, so did the wing that Lycanroc was attached to, flailing her around while she retained her hold. Shortly after that, the winds began to grow in speed and intensity, until Lycanroc could no longer hang on. With the final blast of wind, she was blown away, rolling across the ground.

"Lycanroc!" Ash called, but as she stood, he flinched. Just like with Kommo-o, Lycanroc had been confused by the after effects of the Hurricane. Ryuki wasn't wasting his moment. Despite the poisoned state of his stalwart partner, Ryuki issued a swift command that was just as swiftly acted upon. Both fists sparking, Dragonite flew right at the confused Lycanroc and slammed down on her.

"Ryu! Ryu! Ryu!" Dragonite grunted with every blow made, punching fiercely against the confused Lycanroc, who howled, unable to make out the foe before her. Ash gripped his fist.

"Lycanroc! I know you can do this! Snap out of it and use Thunder Fang!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cheered as well. Even if Ash couldn't see them, he knew that his friends were likewise calling out to her. She stopped moving as Dragonite reared back to land yet another blow, and her eyes flashed. Ash grinned; she was back. Moving swiftly, Lycanroc's jaw sparked once more, and as Dragonite's fist came towards her she bit down upon it. The ensuing electricity exploded outwards, Pikachu almost reveling in it.

"Now, Accelerock!" Ash called, bringing his hand straight up into a fist. Lycanroc's body glowed, and she charged forward, letting go of the fist to nail Dragonite in the jaw before bounding away.

"Hyper Beam, Dragonite!" Ryuki called. He didn't bother singing the command, which showed how seriously he was taking the entire battle at this point. Dragonite recovered and reared back before firing out the pitch-black beam.

"Dodge and use Stone Edge!" Ash called out once again. The beam fired, but was still no match for Lycanroc's incredible speed as she dodged to the side and howled, sending the line of stones out rapidly. This time, they weren't interrupted and impaled Dragonite in the chest, tossing it upwards. "Now, use Crunch!"

"Lycrrrr!" Lycanroc growled, pouncing into the air, before Dragonite could recover, and sinking her teeth right into its neck. It cried out, whipping around wildly to try and get rid of the marauding wolf, but was unable to.

Ryuki, however, had a solution for that.

"All right, Dragonite! This might hurt, buddy! But you can take it!" the guitarist called out, suddenly crossing his wrists in front of himself with his glittering Z-Ring. Then he followed the usual motions for a Z-Move until he made his hands like a mighty jaw that was splitting open. "Got this gem of a crystal when I was kicking around on Poni; was offered a chance at a real wicked trial, but when I turned it down, the captain gave me this. Been lookin' for it a long time! Devastating Drake!"

"Ryuuuuuuu!" Dragonite's mouth opened wide, like it was shooting off a Dragon Pulse, only this creature looked far deadlier than a Dragon Pulse, and more frightening, besides. It was gray and smoky, as though some kind of draconic spirit with a will of its own. It shot out, traveling through the air to the crowd's screaming before arching back down for both Dragonite and Lycanroc. It was too fast to dodge and it slammed into both of them, exploding upon the surface of the dirt field. Ash reached up to hold on to his hat from the ensuing explosion that ripped through, taking a step forward in the hopes that Lycanroc was still standing.

Both of the Pokémon had dropped to the ground, clearly exhausted, though still trying to get up to fight. Dragonite looked way worse off with the poison wracking its body, along with taking its own powerful attack. Ash shook his head; from all of Ryuki's challenges, it was obvious that the boy was reckless, but this just took the cake. That made Ash decide to end the battle swiftly, before he could pull off any more stupid stunts on his Pokémon.

"All right, Lycanroc, give a big Stone Edge to break out! Then slam it with Accelerock!"

"Ah, get up, Dragonite! I know you can take it, big guy!" Ryuki called out, an edge of worry creeping into his voice. Lycanroc began pushing herself up, even as Dragonite was twitching in its attempt to get up.

"Larooooooooo!" Lycanroc howled powerfully, the sound resonating across the entire stadium. All around her body the stones jutted up, right into Dragonite's prone form and pushing it into the air, right within attack range. Despite Ryuki's insistent calling, Dragonite was pinned by the rocks beneath it. Ash punched forward and Lycanroc's body blazed with gray light. Sending off another howl, she leapt forward, breaking through her own rocks and sending Dragonite flailing through the air with her impact. She twisted around in midair and then landed nimbly. Dragonite, meanwhile, dropped and slammed into the dirt battlefield without a single following movement.

The crowd was hushed, waiting for the call, though Ryuki's frown and sigh said that he knew the result. The referee looked, and seemed satisfied.

"Dragonite is unable to battle! The winner is Lycanroc and Ash!" he called. The crowd rose in a cheer once more, as on the screen above, Ryuki's face faded away and Ash's was left, joining the faces of Tristan, Gladion and Hau on the screen as the four remaining trainers.

"Nice job, Lycanroc! You were awesome, breaking through confusion like that!" Ash cheered, running on to the field and skidding on his knees. Lycanroc looked happy at his praise, nuzzling against him as Ash ran his hands through her fur. He heard the sounds of footsteps as the crowd continued going completely wild.

"That was some nice battlin'," Ryuki spoke, standing only a couple feet away. He had a hand extended, prompting Ash to take it as the two opponents nodded to one another. "Shame I couldn't make it to the semis, but there's always next time, yeah?"

"Of course," Ash answered him. His smile dropped off, replaced with a rather stern expression. "Hey, Ryuki, you'll be battling on the Day of Stars, right?" The boy nodded, as if wondering where he was going with this. "Good to know. I'll look forward to you helping us. Then, you can show even more of that stubborn strength of yours, as long as you don't endanger your Pokémon to do it. I don't think you really got a chance to cut loose here, restraining yourself so much. Pretty sure the Ultra Beasts will provide that kind of opportunity."

"Well, thanks, it'll be a pleasure to battle alongside ya," Ryuki assured him, raising a hand up to ruffle his own hair. That seemed to drive his crying fangirls wild from that action alone. "And when it's done, maybe I'll write a new single 'The Ballad of Ash Ketchum'."

"I think we can pass on that, huh, Pikachu?" Ash asked with a nervous laugh. Pikachu seemed to agree. Ryuki still grinned and pulled Ash forward, giving him a hug, which surprised Ash, but with one hand, he patted the guy on the back. Like brothers-in-arms, despite the fact they hadn't known it.

"What a great finale to this quarterfinal!" Kalas called out, the crowd screaming at the show of affection. Lycanroc even barked a bit excitedly. "But there's still more than enough excitement to go around here at the Alola League's Lanakila Conference, and on the screen we have our existing semifinal matchups!"

Ash and Ryuki both looked up, paying particular attention to the next day's rounds. The four portraits began to swirl around before finally stopping and flipping over. Kalas began his announcement, but Ash didn't need it to see the two different matchups on the screen, in the order they'd be held the next day.

His body and those of his Pokémon flushed with excitement and enthusiasm, knowing their next battle would be a great one. For on the screen, it read:

GLADION vs. TRISTAN

HAU vs. ASH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: And so, Ash has made it to the semifinals! And he'll be facing Hau in a full battle no less! Of course, this chapter was all about Ryuki, who, yes, was a late addition and ultimately unimportant to the plot, but I thought using a game character would be a cool way to have a quarterfinal. And I didn't show the other round, because it was unnecessary, with a character that had no personality truly and I felt would take away from the actual plot to drag it out, so instead I gave a snippet. Hopefully you enjoyed the fight, though! The next one should be even better, I think.
> 
> I hope you're enjoying the first Alola League so far, because it's about to heat up big time! Until the next battle, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	19. A Light

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first full battle I've written for the series. I hope it lives up to expectations in energy, strategy and everything in between. Now, time for Chapter 19!

Chapter 19

A Light

"To both our semifinalists, congratulations!" Clemont cried out, standing upon a table as he declared this. Serena had to laugh, not understanding just what had made Clemont start acting this way. Really, he was acting like he was drunk on some kind of adrenaline sugar from the battles they had watched today. Which was fine and all, but not really Clemont.

"What's gotten into you?" Serena had to laugh out. Next to her, Ash was shoveling down food with Pikachu. Just behind him, the three that had participated in that day's match were wolfing (literally in Lycanroc's case) their food down eagerly.

"Nothing!" Clemont defended himself, waving his hands rapidly in front of his face. "I'm just very happy and excited that Ash made it to the semifinals of the League. It's rather exciting to know that he's one of four trainers remaining. Plus, I've chosen to be supportive no matter what. If you'd like, Ash, I'm sure I could provide some extra training for you and your team. I know Vikavolt and the others wouldn't mind some before the Day of Stars!"

That was a sobering thought, Serena realized. Sure, the upcoming Day was on every one of their minds, including those of their friends who had chosen to not quite celebrate with them. Some of them, like Sawyer and Seamus (who had forged this odd friendship between one another), had gone off to rewatch all of the videos from the League thus far. Serena realized there weren't many, given this was the first League. However, thinking on it, did make her remember their own upcoming battle for the world, itself. It seemed so close now, an unsettling thought that reached all of them at the table in that moment in time.

_I wonder if my father's still watching…_ Serena mused to herself, taking a brief look outside of the Pokémon Center to the snow outside. It was definitely wintery, though that wasn't really the worst of things, she realized. There was still plenty of the day to enjoy.

"Thanks for the offer, Clemont. Maybe we'll do some late training tonight!" Ash said, pumping his fist in the air. Serena smiled, giggling just a little at his enthusiasm. This really was the Ash that she loved to see: driven, determined and confident. He really looked to have enjoyed himself during his battle with Ryuki, and judging from after the battle, the two boys had become fast friends, it seemed. Ash seemed  _very_  pleased with that.

"I'm happy Ash is going on, too, but you're acting like he's never gotten into the semifinals before…" Bonnie drawled out with boredom, her head touching the table as a straw was sticking out of her mouth.

"This is different, Bonnie!" Rotom corrected her before Clemont had a chance to. "Right now, Ash stands a chance of becoming Alola's first ever Champion! Rotom estimates that Ash has roughly a-"

"I don't like to hear the odds!" Bonnie snapped at the Pokédex. From within her bag, both Squishy and Dedenne stirred for all of five seconds before returning to sleep. "Though…he'll be facing Hau tomorrow…"

"Hmm…" Clemont noticed, as well, stepping down from the table (and away from attention). "You're right. One of our friends won't be making it on to the finals…though Gladion might. Even if the rest of his Pokémon go down in a full battle, Silvally has more than enough strength to ultimately pick up the slack."

"No matter what it is, we'll win it!" Ash proclaimed, twisting in his seat to face his team. Serena noticed that even though they were stuffing their faces, they had a fire lit in all of them for the battle ahead. "No doubt Hau is training real hard for the battle tomorrow, and I can't wait to battle him! It's been a long time since the last one."

"He certainly is," Lillie laughed out in her seat, daintily eating her own food. She may have been used to traveling through the wilds, but obviously the lady inside her was rather omnipresent. "He says he wants to develop two secret weapons to take you down. It's cute, in its own way."

"So, then…" Bonnie said, wiggling her eyes as she sidled up to Lillie. "Who are  _you_  gonna root for? Ash or your  _boyfriend_?"

"Bonnie, stop that," Clemont sighed out. Even Rotom seemed annoyed, nabbing the back of Bonnie's shirt and yanking her away unceremoniously. Lillie, to Ash's surprise, didn't even blush, though Clemont wore an equal amount of embarrassment for her. "You can't go butting into people's relationships."

"But why not? It's fun. I mean, Sawyer and Miette, Rocky and Astrid! Lots of possibilities! I can always force you and Korrina to spend more time together, too," Bonnie said, eyes sparkling. Clemont went ramrod straight, almost looking like he was panicking in the moment. His mouth flapped open and shut, clearly rather unsure of what to say. His hand reached down to grab his bag, like he wanted to make a quick exit. "You two have barely spent any time together since she came to Alola! Don't you want to-"

"BONNIE!" Clemont whined, racing off before his sister could finish her sentence. She did so seconds later, Serena feeling like a word was missing there somewhere; a word that she shouldn't have known.

"-your relationship before the Day of Stars?" She was sticking her tongue out with a wink as she now stood and chased out after her brother. Clearly, training for Ash was out of the window now, though neither he nor his Pokémon minded as they continued to eat. Serena looked to Lillie, who was blinking a little.

"Who  _are_  you planning to cheer for?" she decided to ask the blonde, though not from the same place that Bonnie had been asking. She was genuinely curious, given how close Lillie was with Hau. The blonde flattened her skirt a bit before answering.

"Both, of course," she answered simply. "I really don't think I could choose, and I know the both of you will be happy with whatever the result is."

"That's for sure," Ash said through a full mouth, swallowing afterwards and leaving his plate empty. He looked content now, and Serena sat back, not feeling all too hungry for herself. Sure, the battles today had been intense, yet she held complete conviction inside her that Ash would pull off his victory…and a three-to-one victory in the quarterfinals against a trainer as skilled as Ryuki…well, Ash had every right to be proud.

"So, I'll support both! My brother is a different story…" Lillie said, looking a little distracted. Ash stopped, turning to watch the blonde as she stared wistfully around the Center, and even Serena observed. It was clear that she still loved her brother, even after his misguided attempts to "save" her…or himself. However, it was also clear that while she supported his advancement through the League, if it came down to him and Ash, or even Hau, she'd root for the other party one hundred percent.

"Thanks, Lillie! We'll do our best!" called Hau's voice suddenly. Ash jerked in his chair, just as Serena did, and the couple turned. For someone as wildly exuberant as Hau was, the boy could be surprisingly silent when he wished to be. Ash's Pokémon all drew back, while Pikachu hopped back to Ash's shoulder and looked across at Pipi, the two of them glaring at one another in friendly challenge. That time, Lillie actually  _did_ blush.

"So, are we both ready to face off tomorrow?" Ash asked, standing from his chair as he did so. The boys didn't hold hands out to shake on it or anything, clearly feeling no real need to do so in that moment.

"More than ready! We've planned two special surprises just to deal with you guys," Hau said, tipping his head back and grinning. "Besides, I really wanna try and win! If I could beat you, that would be so awesome."

"I'm glad you two can have such a friendly rivalry," Lillie admitted. That drew out yet another grin from the boy she was praising (not that it seemed hard in Hau's case). The Alolan native stopped crossing his feet, and for the first time that Serena could think of, he stopped grinning, looking serious.

"So am I," he said sternly. It wasn't the same kind of attitude that those like Gladion had, but it was certainly more somber than anything Serena had seen on him in all her time knowing him. "I've really liked competing against Ash in lots of different ways. It's opened my world up a little from that small town on Melemele Island."

Here, Hau turned around and looked outside at the softly falling snow, taking it in with a breath. Pipi even lowered to the ground, gazing up at her trainer fondly. "I was always happy with my life, ya know? Me and tutu, even after the ohana died. Never thought I needed more than Iki Town. Then, I met everyone, went on lots of adventures with Pipi, Incineroar and everyone and my world grew just a little bit.

"I want to thank you for that!" Hau chirped out, once more facing Ash with his signature grin. "That's the reason I'm going all out tomorrow. I've seen mean people, nice people and everything in between. I've seen Lillie hurt and been unable to do anything about it. I've seen friends fight and all, too, and it's made me realize, even if I love smiling…sometimes you gotta take life a little more serious, too. That's why I'm going to put my feelings on the line tomorrow! You do it, too!"

"Of course!" Ash assured him. Serena could feel the air of challenge around the two boys, yet there was no air of tension there, something which reassured her greatly and made her breathe in great relief. They were two trainers who were going to have a fun, but very serious, battle. Serena had never thought about it before, but looking at Hau now, he had grown up. The boy always seemed to remain the same through everything, smiling and laughing, but now it was clear that he had worked to improve himself over that month just like the rest of them.

He was now a young man who knew how to take things seriously, but not let life's problems get him down. Ash seemed to have grown from that, too, if his own telling grin was the judge.

"Great! On that note, we've got a debt to settle!" Hau said suddenly. Ash blinked at him, and Serena did, as well. The couple looked at each other, genuinely confused as to what Hau could be talking about in that moment. "Oh, come on! You don't remember?"

"Remember what?" Ash asked, reaching up to scratch at his nose with a light chuckle. Hau's mouth dropped open, but he quickly brought it back up. Once he did, he sucked in a short breath and put his hands on his hips.

"You beat me on Akala, and while I'm gonna go all out to beat you tomorrow, I still owe you a planned date!" Hau said, pointing outwards. Serena had to stop herself from paling a little. She'd completely forgotten about the bet that both Ash and Hau had made on arrival to Akala Island. It simply seemed far too long ago, if she was honest with herself. More than that, she had to wonder: did Hau even know  _how_  to plan a date?

"Oh…that…right…" Ash said, chuckling nervously again. He slid his eyes over to her, and Serena twisted her lips a little, unsure of what to say at the show of Hau's earnestness in the moment. It was like he was looking for a way out of the situation, or simply a way of understanding it. Sometimes, she could never be sure with Ash, but she loved that about him, anyway. "Uh…you don't have to worry about that."

"Wha…?" Hau said, his mouth now flapping open almost incredulously at the statement. Even Pipi got in on the action by floating upwards and giving a very incredulous "rai rai!" at Ash's dismissal. "I worked so hard, though. Seriously, Incineroar and Pipi and the rest of the team put in their best efforts! I thought it would be perfect before our battle. Really show we've got no hard feelings."

"Okay, Hau," Serena said. Ash was looking at her again, and she was apologizing using her eyes. He sighed a little, clearly finding no way of getting out of this planned date in any single way. Serena just smiled, and quickly thought of a way to turn it around. "We'll agree to go on a date…but why don't you use your plan for yourself?"

"Wouldn't that kind of defeat the purpose of the bet?" Lillie asked, tilting her head a little at Serena's suggestion. The honey blonde flicked her eyes over to Lillie for a second, before looking over to Ash, his smile growing as he realized just what she was up to. He looked to Pikachu and chuckled just a little.

"Nah, the bet was that the loser plans a date for the winner," Ash said, now imitating Hau in his actions by tucking his hands behind his head with his own little grin. "And as the winner, I want Hau to use the plan he made on his own date…"

"How about with you, Lillie?" Serena suggested. For a girl that was so unaffected by Bonnie's comments earlier, her face blossomed into that of a tomato, looking thoroughly embarrassed by the option. Hau was just distracted, pulling out his plan and looking at it while he considered her words, muttering that he didn't think that was it, but soon dismissing it. He started nodding at some point.

"B-b-b-b-but…w-w-w-w-we're not…not…not…" Lillie was stammering, unable to say what was on her mind through whatever  _could have_  been going through her mind. Perhaps Bonnie's words had affected her more than she let on. Hau finally snapped his fingers and slammed his fist into his palm.

"All right, makes total sense!" Hau exclaimed outward. He suddenly reached forward towards the furiously blushing Lillie and took hold of her wrist, pulling her up out of her chair. She almost fell into his arms, but stopped herself. "Wanna go on a date with me, Lillie? I think I planned a real fun one! There's some ice skating, a tour of the castle and lots of fun things. It'll be a great thing to relax before the battle tomorrow, and the Day of Stars, too."

"Um…um…" Lillie looked a little lost, and slightly torn, Serena noticed. She clearly wanted to indulge herself in the moment, but at the same time wanted to sort of stay out of it. However, when she looked at Serena, she seemed to draw a sense of courage. "O-okay. Yeah. Let's have a d-date."

"Awesome! You don't mind if Pipi comes along, do you?" Lillie appeared to have no problem with that, though it may have been an effect of Hau dragging her off without a single extra thought. Ash just had to laugh at it as they watched the two of them go. Shortly after, he returned all but Pikachu to their pokeballs and sat next to Serena, letting out a quick exhale.

"Nice one, Serena!" Ash said, throwing an arm out and drawing her close. She practically melted in his hold, accidentally sniffing his vest a little. It smelled so like him, mostly like sweat from a hard day's work, but it suited him so well. "Not that I don't want to go on dates or anything, but…well…"

"I get it, Ash," Serena assured him by placing her lips on his fingers coyly. It made her feel very bold in that moment, something which Ash appeared to appreciate somehow, but didn't say anything about. "We'll save our date for after you become the Champion."

"Okay, Miss Ali'i ka Leilani," Ash said, gripping her even more. She liked hearing that from his lips. It made the victory sound like it meant something personal, rather than just a title, one she had to consider differently in light of her  _true_  dream. Breathing in and watching the world fall away with just the two of them, she considered it a luxury that she didn't know if they would have, sooner or later. "Anything you want to do?"

"Just stay here…a little while?" she muttered out, not even realizing that she was doing so. Either way, Ash accepted it, leaning forward to kiss her on the crown of her head. It was calming in a sea of so many waves. For a moment, it felt normal. The Day of Stars didn't matter. Her newfound title didn't matter. Ash's League battle didn't matter. It was just the two of them. That felt so…right.

Of course, she knew they couldn't stay there forever, and in time, she and Ash were forced to get up. Knowing what Ash would really want to do, she took his hand and began to lead him to the training facilities at the stadium.  _After all_ , she reasoned,  _it wouldn't be the worst thing for me to improve a little more before the Day of Stars._

On the way there, they ran into a number of familiar faces out having a good time. From Brock being dragged by Croagunk (okay, only one was having a good time, there) to Dawn and Mairin seemingly dragging Alain along to "accessorize" his tough guy appearance, they all looked like they were having a good time. Christopher and Bethany also seemed to be on a date while Serena could swear that she saw Astrid and Rocky having lunch together, all while Sawyer and Seamus gushed over the lineup of battles with enthusiasm. The most tame were the mismatched trio of Kahili, Hapu and Mina, reminding Serena that the captains and Kahunas were all there. This was proven especially so with Kahili's wink towards Ash that showed she was playing close attention to his matches.

Thankfully, once they were inside the training facility, it was far quieter, owing to the lesser number of trainers left in the event. In fact, there only seemed to be one keeping up training in his own room, and he quickly turned to them when he heard their footsteps going past the door. Ash stopped, as well, the two staring across to one another, while Serena watched. This was something for the two of them and nothing more, even if she understood it. Ash stepped forward.

"Gladion," he said, looking over to the blond. Said boy nodded, Silvally glancing almost ferally up at Pikachu. "I'm going to win tomorrow. Then, we'll face each other in the finals, no matter what."

"Of course," Gladion spoke. He didn't waste any more time on the conversation, turning away almost instantly and striding further inward to his training room. It was a somewhat silent promise between them. Serena wasn't sure if there was still any animosity there from before, but both were clearly willing to make the effort. Just not right now.

Knowing that, Serena gripped her boyfriend's arm and began to steer him away towards an unoccupied training room that was a little larger for the both of them to use. Feeling him in her hold, she could at least sense that he wasn't distracted by whatever issue there still was with Gladion. That was good, because she knew Hau would bring all of his training and the power of being a Kahuna's grandson to bear on him.

"Which is why we'll  _all_  try to put you through your paces!" Serena insisted to him, her entire team all looking fierce and ready for battle. Ash's whole team was out, even Greninja, who watched from a side of the room. Ash had to grin at that one.

"Best date ever!" he called, throwing his fist in the air. Serena laughed, but soon after got serious. Only Ash could love an impromptu training date. Not that she found it that bad, actually enjoying training with Ash. He really let himself loose upon her team, with only Sandshrew having a hard time truly keeping up…and that was with Pikachu going easy on him. The whole session passed in a blur, leaving Serena on the ground, sweating from how much physical exertion it took to keep her composure in calling commands.

"I take it back! I take it back!" she said, waving her hands back and forth. Ash looked at her as he returned his team, all of them ready for the intense fight that Hau was likely to give. " _You_  put  _me_  through my paces…don't know why I thought otherwise…"

"Hey, thanks, Serena!" he said, both for the compliment and just for the general help. He stepped forward, helping her off the ground. Serena nodded and, feeling they were ready for some dinner and rest, left the facility. Passing along to get a quiet dinner, Serena noticed Clemont and Korrina actually hiding. It became obvious who they were hiding from as Bonnie and Rotom ran along, as if searching for them. The younger girl also caught sight of the two of them.

"You haven't seen Clemont have you?" Bonnie questioned, peering around carefully. "I asked Squishy for help, but he just seems to want to sleep."

"Bonnie, Squishy isn't supposed to help you on your spying adventures," Serena pointed out with pursed lips. Bonnie just waved it off, like it didn't matter whatsoever. The honey blonde sighed.

"Anyway, guess we'll get back to looking…"

"Or Bonnie and Rotom can find Hau and Lillie! Rotom believes Bonnie said it looked like they were on a date!" Rotom insisted. Bonnie adopted a sly look on her face, one that Rotom emulated. Clearly all of their bickering had caused the two of them to become far too alike to one another.

"Good idea, let's go!" Bonnie said, facing the direction of the castle. Before she ran off, she looked back. "You two, don't do anything I wouldn't!"

" _Bonnie_!" Serena screeched after her, but the girl was too fast to catch up to. Those were the sorts of words she expected from Miette, not Bonnie. Just what  _had_ Lionel taught her during their month together? Ash laughed about it, hooking his arm with hers as Pikachu settled in between, and the two set off once again. Thankfully, dinner was just what she needed to partially push her frustration with Bonnie out of the way. Not that it excised everything about the lemon blonde from her mind, especially her earlier comments about Clemont and Korrina. She was starting to figure out just what she had been trying to say, and it made her flush uncomfortably.

"Man, I'm beat! Let's get some sleep!" Ash proclaimed once dinner was completely finished, the raven-haired trainer stretching wide as they left the Center. Serena nodded silently, not wanting to say anything. She just continued onward with him until he stopped. Serena looked up at that and recognized the reason: Kukui and Hala were standing outside some of the trainer houses, chatting like it was nothing. Ash stepped forward on the snow as the two men were walking along, oblivious to what was going on around them.

"I've been told that all those Skull miscreants are set up in position for the Day. Once the exhibition gets underway, we'll move just about everyone else into position," Kukui was saying. Serena blinked.  _Exhibition?_

"Good. The Kahunas will take their place on the centers of the islands, and the captains will be with us in individual cities or areas," Hala said. It was obvious they were speaking of the Day of Stars, despite being in public, and in hushed tones. "I hear tell that Kiawe will aid with some transportation, and I've no doubt the Tapus and other Totem Pokémon will be making their moves, restless as they are."

"Then it looks like we're all set. Woo! These next few days will be ones to remember!" Kukui said. The two older men had already passed them, completely oblivious to their presence. Hala chortled, but said nothing as he continued to walk on. Ash looked back at her but, deciding that they couldn't glean anything from the conversation other than the obvious sense that the Day of Stars was looming, the two retired to their trainer's house. Naturally, no one was there, despite the late-growing hour.

Ash just threw himself on top of his bed, smiling up at the ceiling. Serena only took a couple of seconds before joining him, knowing there wouldn't be much other chance left. It made her more nervous than usual, despite the number of times they'd done this before, but Ash's soon audible snores made her calm down, especially as Pikachu crawled onto his chest and relaxed there. In his sleep, Ash pulled her closer, hand sliding up the skin of her back. She ignored it, though, soon slipping into her own sense of dreamland.

Unfortunately, it gave Bonnie a never-ending fuel of teasing as they woke up the next morning and made their way to the stadium.

"So Hau and Lillie went on a  _date_ , and then Clemont and Korrina were probably off making  _kissy faces_ , while Ash and Serena  _slept together_!" Bonnie was teasing with all of them. Clemont was red as could be, same as Lillie, while Serena reined herself in from it all, sticking her nose up with dignity as they settled themselves into their seats facing the battlefield. The rest of their friends, sitting nearby, didn't seem to be listening over the rather audible crowd. "You guys are too easy to tease!"

"And  _you're_  getting more annoying," Clemont told his sister. Bonnie stuck her tongue out, but finally decided to stop teasing in light of the first semifinal match, which Kalas announced to be starting. Hau was nowhere with their group, which was somehow expected, but Ash was paying close to attention to Gladion, down below, as he and Tristan faced off in the first full battle of the League.

The match didn't last long, at least to Serena's eyes. Granting, it wasn't as horribly lopsided as Alain's battle against Remo in the Kalos League, but it was also all too obvious who would win the second that Silvally hit the field. Of course, it still took Tristan putting in a full team effort to take out Gladion's Toxapex, Araquanid and his own Salazzle, which looked less threatening (but still as powerful) when compared to Plumeria's. However, once those three went down (taking almost all of the other five of Tristan's team), Silvally was sent out, and quickly made its usual short work.

"Crush Claw!" Gladion roared, as the final battle was finally coming to its end against Tristan's Tauros. Tauros was slashed across the face by the blood red claw, sending the bull stumbling backwards.

"Tauros!" Tristan cried out, though the bull was shaking its head, showing it was still willing to fight. What Serena noticed most of all was that Gladion had yet to make Silvally shift its type, which meant the victory would almost assuredly be theirs. "Giga Impact!"

"Mooooo!" Tauros lowed out, beginning to stampede forward. The boy had already used a Gigavolt Havoc earlier in the battle to take out Toxapex, which meant that Giga Impact was all he had left on the table. Tauros' body was surrounded in purple and yellow light as it charged forward. Gladion threw his wrist out, and Clemont sat forward.

"System Change: Ghost!" Gladion roared. The crowd cheered, pleased and intrigued to see the strangeness of Silvally's signature presence. Silvally's plumage and tail puffed out with a ghostly presence and Tauros slammed into it…or through it, given its changed typing.

"Now, Zen Headbutt!" Tristan cried. Tauros stopped his charging, whipping around as he now blazed with blue and struck forward. This time, the blow hit home, causing Silvally to cry out. The type shift had definitely tired it out, leaving it quite vulnerable. It skidded along the field, while Clemont gripped at his knee with fascination.

"System Change: Fighting! Now, Multi-Attack!"

"Verrrrrrrra!" Silvally roared out, now puffing out to an amber color as it barreled forward, driving into Tauros and sending it slamming against the mountainous battlefield they were currently on. Naturally, the bull didn't stir, and the referee called the match.

"And we have our first finalist! Gladion will be moving on to the final round! Can anyone stand against him and Silvally? ! Or will he be the undisputed victor of this Lanakila Conference? !" Kalas called out. Serena frowned, looking to Ash, but he didn't seem concerned in the slightest. He was just standing and stretching, ready for his semifinal match. "Now, a brief moment for our next pair of semifinalists to come to the field while we switch it out."

"Good luck, Ash!" Korrina chimed out, waving to him with a piece of food in her mouth. Serena did a double take at her, as well as catching sight of Team Rocket right there, selling Korrina the edible product. They also looked like they were doing a silent cheer for him.

"Have a good battle," Serena assured him, knowing he was ready to face Hau. He took all of their encouragement and grinned out his thanks before turning away. Once he was gone, Serena breathed in and looked at Clemont next to her, his hands clasped as his elbows rested on his knees. A few seats down on her other side, Maka was also waving Ash good luck.

"Ash is going to have a very tough time with Silvally…" Clemont commented under his breath, enough for Serena to hear. "It's been undefeated the whole League, and that type shifting can make it tricky to overcome, even if he can only use it twice. It's hard to believe that's the kind of power the mask was restraining this whole time, only keeping its compatibility with Z-Moves intact…really shows how close it and Gladion are."

"Don't count Ash out yet," Serena reminded him. "He always finds a way to make the impossible, possible." Clemont just nodded at that, and clearly decided to pay his attention towards  _this_  battle first. What Silvally was or wasn't able to do was unimportant. Ash would be able to overcome that challenge; it wasn't like a potential battle with Gladion would be about that in the first place.

"And here we are ladies and gentlemen! Our second semifinal match to determine the other trainer moving on to the finals!" Kalas called out, to the great enthusiasm of the crowd around them. Serena scooted forward as she noticed both Ash and Hau advancing on to the battlefield's trainer areas. At the same time, the field was rising up from the stadium, looking like a beautiful grassy knoll with a large lake that seemed to take up half the field, large, circular logs floating about in the middle. From a quick glance, both boys looked excited. "Are you all ready? ! Because these two trainers are sure to give you all one heck of a show! It's battle time between Ash and Hau!"

"YEAH! YEAAAAAH!" the crowd roared around them, each ready for the battle between the two trainers. Lillie came to her feet, cupping her hands around her mouth as she did so.

"Go, Ash! Go, Hau! Both of you do your very best!" she screamed with a smile. Serena had to laugh, just as Clemont and Bonnie did. All of their other friends had no such compunctions in cheering wholeheartedly for just Ash behind them. The referee was stepping forward as Lillie now sat down next to Serena.

"This will be a six-on-six battle between Ash and Hau! The battle will be over when all six of one side's Pokémon have been defeated! Further, there will be a field change when one side has lost three Pokémon," the referee called out. The crowd cheered again, while on the screen, Ash and Hau's faces were displayed, along with six pokeballs.

"Hau, let's make this a battle no one will forget!"

"You got it, Ash! We'll all do it together! Snorlax, let's go!" Hau cheered out, throwing his pokeball up into the air and snatching it before tossing it forward. From it, emerged the large Pokémon with a yawn. Ash also stepped forward.

"Toucannon, I choose you!" Ash called, tossing the pokeball forth for Toucannon to appear with a cry, remaining in the air with her flapping wings. The two were ready to battle. The referee raised his hand as Toucannon and Snorlax's images appeared on the screen. Then he lowered it swiftly, calling for the battle to begin.

"Toucannon, start us off with Flame Charge!" Ash called, making the first move, like usual. Serena leaned forward a little more as Toucannon's body blazed with crimson flames. She shot forward, the air rippling with heat behind her as she did so. Snorlax remained in place, and to Serena's surprise, Hau wasn't throwing himself into the battle, instead waiting. Ash must have realized it, too, because despite his calm, he didn't look worried at all.

"Toucaaah!" Toucannon cried, slamming right into Snorlax's stomach. The Sleeping Pokémon didn't budge at all, and hardly looked too hurt by the initial attack.

"Must have Thick Fat," Korrina commented. That was ultimately unimportant to Serena, and it seemed to be the same to Ash and Hau, both of whom were now moving right into battle, the first "testing" move out of the way.

"Ice Punch, Snorlax!" Hau called, jumping a bit. Snorlax's eyes snapped open, his fist thrown back with a blistering icy glow. That same fist soared out and slammed into Toucannon, whose flames had faltered. The Cannon Pokémon was blasted off, its wing crusting over with ice, but shaking her head to show she was still in the battle.

"All right, use Hyper Voice! Combine it with Feather Dance!" Ash roared out, bringing his fist upwards. Toucannon flapped her wings, a little slower than before but giving herself some distance from the large foe in front of her. As she did so, feathers shot out, creating a slight veil of them to precede her. Then her beak opened wide.

"Toucaaaaaaaaah!" she screamed out, red soundwaves pulsing from her beak as she cried. The feathers were pushed forward with the deadly soundwaves. This time, Snorlax looked affected, his stubby arms reaching to his ears to cover them, for all the good it did. The feathers sailed forth, touching down to Snorlax's skin and tinging him blue for a moment.

"Rollout!" Hau called, his grin omnipresent. Snorlax's arms snapped off of his ears and he started charging forward before jumping, to Serena's surprise, and he curled himself into a ball. Then, he began rolling along, right for Toucannon.

"Get moving! Ah!" Ash must have realized the command would do little good. Toucannon turned to get away, but due to the ice on her wing, had slowed down. Snorlax slammed into her from behind, sending her spiraling through the air. "No problems! Flame Charge! Surround Snorlax quickly like a box!"

"Get ready to defend!" Hau called out. Toucannon's body sparked for a second and then blazed with fire. The ice melted away and she blasted forward, moving much faster now that the ice was gone. She angled in midair, twisting back around and aiming for Snorlax. Only, she didn't make contact.

"Low to the ground!" Toucannon obeyed, her beak scraping along the grassy field. That grass was lit on fire as she did so. She quickly took a tight turn, pulling around Snorlax, as if surrounding him in a ring of fire. The grass lit up with the powerful conflagration, locking Snorlax in. "Now, Beak Blast!"

"Ice Punch!" Hau ordered. Serena's eyebrow flew up as Lillie pulled her hands to her chest. Hau's order had obviously come a little too quick, not thinking about what Ash would order. Snorlax's fist was crackling with ice again and he punched forward. The flames around Toucannon's body faded, funneling into her beak, causing it to glow pure crimson. Snorlax's punch made contact, and for a moment, nothing happened. "Ah! Snorlax!"

"Snooooore!" Snorlax cried out. Despite its super effective attack, the Sleeping Pokémon looked to be on the worse end of the attacks, recoiling as the flames shuddered around his entire body, burning him. At the same time, the beak exploded, blasting him backwards as Toucannon gained her distance.

"Now, Hyper Voice!" Toucannon opened her beak once again and shouted loudly. The sound only slightly disturbed the flames that were on the field, but otherwise affected the burning Snorlax the most, who was hunkered down from the dual assault. Hau looked to step forward, sharing his enthusiasm with his brave Pokémon.

"Rollout! Get rid of the flames in your path by heading to the lake!" Hau ordered. Clemont gave a start next to Serena. Snorlax tucked himself into a ball once more, and began rolling fiercely along the battlefield. There were flames in his path, but he didn't seem to mind. In fact, at his quick rolling motion, the flames in that particular path disappeared as he rolled forward towards the lake. "Now, use Heavy Slam!"

"Snorlaax!" Snorlax cried out. At the last moment of reaching the water's surface, he flew upwards, bringing himself out of the spin.

"Flame Charge, Toucannon!" Ash called out. Toucannon's body blazed once more and she shot off, moving almost imperceptibly fast, though Serena knew that wasn't the case. She was still slower than Talonflame had been back in the day, but was fast enough to be over the lake in moments. Snorlax snapped out, limbs stretched wide as he aimed for the surface of the water. In seconds, before Toucannon could reach him, he made impact.

The water exploded outward, washing outwards, over the edge of the lake's banks. At the same time, the impact of Snorlax's attack caused the water to erupt upwards like a geyser, rain falling on the entire field. It seemed to be an impressive strategy, because as Toucannon shot overhead and made herself whip back around, her flames disappeared. At the same time, so did the ones on the surface of the grassy field. Snorlax also proved to be surprisingly buoyant, floating back up to the surface. At that moment, a log came floating along, right near him.

"All right, Snorlax! Let's freeze it with Ice Punch to get some advantage!"

"Quick, weaken it with Feather Dance!" Ash yelled out, tossing his fist to the side. Pikachu cheered loudly from Ash's side. Toucannon flapped her wings out, sending her feathers outward in a cascade of almost falling petals from the way they moved. Snorlax flipped up nimbly on the log, his fist glowing with the chilling blue before he slammed it into the lake. The water's surface rippled and then quickly froze, just as the feathers touched down, making Snorlax glow blue again.

"Punch it to make an incline!" Hau ordered. Snorlax did just as asked, bare fist slamming downward to make a chunk of ice now break off on the water's surface. His foot touched upon it, creating a ramp out of the lake. "Belly Drum!"

"Get ready for a Beak Blast!" Ash called. Snorlax reached forward, beginning to beat his stomach drum with a low echo. Toucannon slowly shifted position, like she was preparing to intercept Snorlax, while her beak suddenly glowed red hot. Their preparations almost seemed finished, and from what Serena could see, Snorlax was looking exhausted, but brimming with a dangerous power. She had to figure that this next clash would decide it.

"Rollout!" Hau called, pumping both fists into the air excitedly. Snorlax began stamping his feet, the flames from his earlier burn licking his body. Then he ran along his makeshift ramp, soon turning into a rolling ball that was picking up more and more speed, until, at last, he shot off for Toucannon. Neither were taking chances, ensuring that their hits would make contact. Snorlax landed, slamming into Toucannon's beak.

It exploded, sending Snorlax raining down to the ground, while the force of the Rollout made Toucannon blow back through the air. Ash wasn't one to let his opportunity escape, however.

"Hyper Voice!" Ash cried. Within seconds, Toucannon had snapped to attention and opened her beak. The powerful red soundwaves fired off, eclipsing the entire arena. Snorlax was hit by them, no way to defend against the strike, and he slammed yet again into the burned grass. The lake cracked a little, turning into rather large, individual chunks of ice, rather than just a pure sheet. However, Serena was watching Toucannon, who looked a little bruised. Not that she compared to Snorlax's body, who instantly burst with flames the second he hit the ground, and then lay there, unstirring.

"Snorlax is unable to battle! Toucannon is the winner!" the referee called out. The crowd cheered loudly while Serena exhaled at Ash having made the first move to pull ahead. Even Clemont looked relieved.

"Aw, man! I thought we had 'em!" Hau said, shaking his head while he called his partner back. "Thanks for everything, Snorlax! You were awesome!"

"And Ash Ketchum has taken the first victory in this semifinal battle! Will he be able to hold on, or will Hau turn up the heat?" Kalas cried to the very enthusiastic crowd. Serena shifted again, trying to catch the look on Ash's face and seeing that he was smiling. This was a battle he was definitely enjoying. She had to figure that part of it was how much he'd come to understand the opponent before him, and what he'd gained from it.

"Hau has the capability to make lots of people excited," Lillie suddenly said, as if reading her mind. Her hand was clasped to her heart as she said so, smiling brightly. "He enjoys every moment of life, even when he knows the moments one needs to be serious. That kind of enthusiasm transfers to battle. It's not about winning or losing for him or the opponent: just about doing the best you can and having fun doing it."

"Hau is one of a kind," Serena said with her own smile. However, that smile became grim at Hau stepping forward and pitching his next pokeball into the air.

"Pipi, it's time!" he called out. The pokeball exploded, and from it came the floating Raichu.

"Rai rai!" Pipi called, doing a few flips in midair happily. She glanced past Toucannon, staring across at Pikachu, like he was the one she  _really_  wanted to face. For that moment, as Toucannon flapped back down to face Pipi, Ash didn't oblige her. Hau took the first move this time.

"Use Psyshock!" Hau called out. Pipi did a slight flip on her tail, her ears quivering as they formed a small purple orb between them. Then they fired off into five purple-colored streaks that aimed right for Toucannon.

"Dodge it with Flame Charge!" Ash called. Toucannon flapped back to gain some distance, but her body burst with flames once more and she shot off to the side. She had definitely picked up more speed than before, even as the Psyshock tracked her. She flapped and spun through the air as the attack came upon her. She twirled enough in midair that the Psyshock made impact with itself, exploding in the space above the arena.

"Electric Terrain!" Hau called out, flicking across his nose excitedly. Pipi began to spark, and, from there, the sparks traveled to her tail before then spreading to the entire arena, including the lake. The entire area began to steam, popping with sparks all over the place. The grass and lake buzzed with electricity.

"Hyper Voice! Let's get 'em!" Ash called, shifting his own foot to show how serious he was taking the battle, despite his smile. Toucannon opened her beak.

"Brick Break!" Hau called. Pipi nodded…and then vanished. Serena blinked and the crowd gasped. Toucannon's attack fired, but since Pipi was no longer where she had been just a second before, the attack simply impacted with the ground and did nothing but stir up the grass like a strong breeze. Instead, Pipi had appeared behind Toucannon, and with a glowing fist, slammed down on her, sending her spiraling to the field. "Thunderbolt, Pipi!"

"Feather Dance, one more time!" Ash called. It was like Ash knew that there was no chance of Toucannon making it out against that kind of speed, and he wasn't going to try in that particular moment. Toucannon knew it too, because she obeyed without question, flapping her wings so another slew of feathers could fly up to brush against Pipi, who was gathering electricity.

"Rai raaaaaaaaaaai!" Pipi screamed out, sending the bolt of lightning searing out at Toucannon. The Flying type slammed onto the field, the sparks jolting through her body. Then the bolt hit, exploding around her and the field. When it faded, the entire patch of grass underneath her was obliterated, leaving a fainted Toucannon there. Pipi floated back down, over to Hau, and slapped her hand against his. The referee raised a hand.

"Toucannon is unable to battle! Raichu is the winner!"

"I don't understand what happened," Bonnie commented as Ash returned Toucannon from below. Clemont reached up and adjusted his glasses. "Toucannon used lots of Flame Charges, so shouldn't she have been faster?"

"Ah ah! Bonnie is as misinformed as ever!" Rotom said, causing Bonnie to glare at it. "Raichu in Alola have a special ability known as Surge Surfer, which allows them to move faster when an Electric Terrain is put up."

"In other words," Clemont noted, folding his hands together, and making Serena almost look worriedly to the field, "whatever Pokémon Ash sends out next will have to deal with not only a vastly more powerful Raichu, but also a much faster one. He'll have to choose carefully."

Despite all that, Serena was certain that she knew which one he'd choose. Sure enough, with a look down and a grin on his face, Ash pointed forward, right across to Hau and Pipi. "Pikachu, I choose you!"

"Ohhh! And Ash chooses Pikachu to combat its own evolved form!" Kalas called, making the crowd excited at the mere notion of that kind of battling possibility. "A not all too uncommon matchup, but let us see how this particular one fares! I'm completely fired up!"

"Yeah, we're pretty fired up as well! I was waiting for you to call Pikachu out," Hau admitted, like he knew Pikachu was one of the biggest threats on Ash's team. He wasn't wrong.

"So are we!" Ash called out, putting his body in a defensive posture while Pikachu's cheeks sparked upon the battlefield, drawing in power from the cycling Electric Terrain. "Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu cried. He blitzed forward, his body blazing with a powerful white light as he sped right for Pipi. Hau kept on grinning, but Serena could see the mischievous glint in his eye.

"Brick Break!" he called. Pipi grinned, just like her trainer, and surfed forward. She disappeared, and soon appeared in front of Pikachu, her glowing fist right in his path. Ash reacted without hesitation, tossing his hand out.

"Iron Tail!" he cried. Pikachu, tied by the bond between Ash and himself, acted instantly. His tail glowed white, stiffening up and swinging upward. The two attacks clashed, holding in place, despite the speed that Pipi had attacked with. That clash sent a small shockwave through the area. "Now, Electro Ball!"

"Pika pika pika pika chu pi!" Pikachu roared out, the crackling orb of electricity forming. Before Hau could give an order, Pikachu fired the orb off, smacking Pipi right in the face. He flipped off, breaking free of the original attack and skidding upon the ground. Serena felt her heart clench a little at the sight, and she forced herself to look away for a second, noticing Gladion watching intently on the other side of the field, surrounded by the thick crowd (which also appeared to include a pumped-up Ryuki in contrast).

"Get moving!" Ash ordered, as if anticipating Hau's next move.

"Psyshock!" Hau called out. His tone was enthusiastic, but had taken a more serious bent to it, clearly determined to defeat Pikachu. Pipi whipped around on her tail, the purple orb forming between her ears before firing in the thick streams after Pikachu. He kept moving as they soared after him.

"Quick Attack, turn it right around!" Ash called. Pikachu acted instantly, body blazing white as he reached the edge of the lake and then bounded in the complete opposite direction, leaping over the streaking Psyshock and running right for Pipi. She and Hau must not have seen it coming, because within seconds, Pikachu had reached Pipi and leapt over her head. The Psyshock that had been following didn't do quite the same, instead impacting with Pipi and sending her backwards. "Now, Thunderbolt!"

"You, too, Pipi!" Hau cried out, punching his fists forward. It made Serena really think of his grandfather. Both Pikachu and Pipi whipped around to face each other, charging up their immensely powerful Thunderbolts and sending them at one another. They soared through the air, making Serena's hair stand on end as they met in that same space at the middle of the arena before exploding. The resultant shockwave rippled the ice on the water.

"Get 'em while they're distracted! Iron Tail!" Ash called out. Pikachu quickly ran forward.

"Chuuu pika!" Pikachu yelled out, skirting underneath the floating Pipi before leaping up. He spun around and brought his glowing tail cracking down on Pipi's head. She shuddered from it, but was able to recover enough for Hau's next clear order, resulting in a similar collision to before. Pipi's fist glowed with the power of Brick Break and she swung around and upward, meeting Pikachu's tail in midair. Their clash once more resounded with shockwaves.

"Flip off, and use Electro Ball!" Ash called, throwing his own fists into the air. Pikachu did as asked, bringing his tail swinging around to smack Pipi's Brick Break away and gain some distance. He landed on the ground, near the edge of the lake as his tail raised up. At its tip, the crackling electricity formed into a solid orb that sparked and grew, before he whipped it right at Pipi.

"Psyshock, now!" Hau ordered. Serena watched them both as the purple orb formed and sent off a lesser three streaks, each thicker than the ones before. They twisted and tangled, and eventually the streaks collided with the Electro Ball and exploded. The resultant explosion forced both Pokémon backwards, especially Pikachu, towards the edge of the lake. Suddenly, the battlefield began to flicker, the electricity fading away. Pipi's speed was soon going to be equal to Pikachu's. Ash and Hau both realized this.

"Pikachu, we have a chance! Get to the lake, and use Iron Tail to knock the ice chunks right at Pipi!" Ash cried out. Serena breathed in and out, her chest rising and falling. She could feel their excitement, equal opponents matching up against one another. She could feel that pulse-pounding energy they were sharing in. It felt almost like she could touch Ash's smile, knowing he was battling at the best he truly ever had.

"Pipi, Electric Terrain! Hurry!" Pikachu was already moving as Pipi's body began to spark, filtering into the ground one more time. Pikachu had jumped on to the ice chunks resting on the lake. His tail glowed white and he brought it slamming down on them to send those chunks of ice up into the air. Serena all too rapidly noticed: it was just like the battle with the Totem Wishiwashi! Pikachu swung around as Pipi finished charging the area, and sent the ice forward with a mighty whack.

"Pikachu's as awesome as ever!" Dawn cheered, bumping fists with Brock behind her. The ice soared out and beaned Pipi on the head.

"Don't let that get you down! Psyshock and Brick Break!" Hau ordered, clearly not worried about the damage at all.

"Raichurai!" Pipi called out, soaring forward with that incredible speed again, though looking slightly tired. Her purple orb was shooting out faster now, though, blasting out across the ice chunks that had shrunk in size upon the sparking lake. Her fist also glowed.

"Use Quick Attack to jump from ice to ice!" Ash called out, throwing his fist up. Pikachu jumped forward, rolling along the ice as the Psyshock happened to streak right past him. He nearly lost his balance, but scrambled up as Pipi approached. Pikachu leapt forward again, barely dodging the strike from the Brick Break. This time, however, he barely scrambled on to the next, much smaller, surface.

"Rai!" Pipi cried, this time, slamming onto the ice and knocking Pikachu into the air. Hau called for a Thunderbolt, and Ash issued his at the same time. Both charged up as one floated, but the other flew back. They were soon surrounded by all manner of electricity that they then sent out towards their opponents. The resultant clash of lightning lasted for a second, before Pipi's broke through, slamming Pikachu and sending him falling towards the water.

"Quick, Electro Ball before you hit!" Ash called. Pikachu, plummeting towards the water's surface, much of the ice having been melted from all the electricity of the Terrain, aimed his tail right at Pipi and called forth the ball of electricity. The voltage sparked and sputtered before firing out. Pipi, still recovering from her use of Thunderbolt, was slammed by it, whirling around through the air. She recovered as Pikachu hit the surface.

"Woo! This is awesome!" Hau cheered out. "Pikachu and Pipi have been great friends since they met, and I know that Pipi's wanted to prove how strong she is to him! Plus, if we let Pikachu keep going, he'll wipe out the entire team."

"Pikachu's enjoyed it, too. But there's no way either of us are conceding this battle, Hau!" Ash proclaimed to his friend and rival. Hau just grinned at that and raised his Z-Ring up.

"Sounds good to me! So, consider this Z-Move a gift from myself and Pipi! It's everything about their friendship and rivalry!" Hau cried out, and he crossed his wrists. Pipi began glowing with the great power of a Z-Move, making Serena's eyes widen. Pikachu was still in the water, with an Electric Terrain all around him, and that meant…Hau's arms began to move, swinging around before bringing themselves into the familiar formation for that of an Electric Z-Move. But it wasn't Gigavolt Havoc. "Stoked Sparksurfer!"

"Rai rai raiiiiiiiii!" Pipi's entire body shot electricity all over, like it was the equivalent of an entire power plant with the way it was causing the air in the stadium to really quiver. Even the screens displaying herself and Pikachu began to shake and quiver. She hung in midair, pulling back slightly as her body gathered more and more electricity. Then she shot forward, to where Pikachu was recovering in the water, the smaller mouse holding on to one of the remaining ice pieces. "Chuuuuuuuuu!"

"Pikachu!" Ash cried out as Pipi surfed forward. She was so quick, it was like the blink of an eye, but she cut through the water and slammed into Pikachu, driving him back in. The electricity coalesced into that one spot, gathering around Pikachu and then exploding in a column of voltage that no one could look away from. Pipi sailed away from it unharmed, but everyone waited with bated breath to see the result. Serena looked to Ash, who breathed in…and smiled.

"Now, Pikachu, Electro Ball! As many as you can!" Ash called. The crowd gasped in total surprise.

"Chu pi! Pi! Pi! Pi!" Serena's eyes lit up and she clapped her hands together. Bright yellow orbs soared out from Pikachu's place in the water, all of them aiming for Pipi. His evolved form didn't expect it and was slammed by all three, tumbling through the air.

"Now, Iron Tail and into Quick Attack!" Ash called out. The smoke finally cleared, allowing everyone in the audience to see that despite how exhausted Pikachu was, no matter how bruised and battered his state was, he was soaring forward. The crowd roared, cheering the little mouse on as he blazed white and knocked right into Pipi's head, sending her reeling with a fierce uppercut of his glowing tail. "Now, finish it with Thunderbolt!"

"Pipi, dodge!" Hau called out, looking just a little panicked for a second. Mostly, it seemed like surprise that the Z-Move hadn't taken Pikachu off of the field. However, Pipi was in no fit state to dodge or counter anything.

"PiiiiikaaaaaaCHUUUUUUUUU!" Pikachu roared. His electricity sparked around his cheeks, covering his whole body and drawing from the Electric Terrain. Then he sent the searing volt forward, arcing through the air until it made impact with Pipi and exploded. They waited a second, Pikachu landing upon the ground, heaving and panting heavily, and then the smoke cleared.

Pipi hung for all of a second, before her tail gave way and she fell, collapsing upon the ground. Pikachu breathed in relief as, around him, the Electric Terrain vanished into little sparks in the air.

"Raichu is unable to battle! Pikachu is the winner!" came the judgment.

"What a performance!" Kalas cried to everyone with his own special brand of cheers. Serena fell back, exhaling, while Lillie still looked as tense as ever. Serena reached over, placing a hand on her shoulder, reminding her that this was still a friendly match between the two. Hau exemplified this as he returned Pipi.

"Pikachu is still totally amazing, Pipi. But you did great! I know we can take him out, now."

"Bring it on, Hau!" Ash said. Pikachu shared his trainer's sentiments, looking towards Hau with a fierce expression. "We're ready for anything!"

"Woo! Those sparks are flying, and I'm on the edge of my seat! No doubt all of you are, as well, for this breathtaking semifinal match! What will Hau pull out now to counter that amazingly strong Pikachu? !"

"As if anything could match Pikachu," Serena heard Jessie snap, almost like she and the rest of Team Rocket were taking pride in the little guy. Alain seemed to be nodding in agreement, as though acknowledging the force that had taken out a whole third of his team in their own match. Pikachu had no doubt grown stronger since then. It made Serena giggle a little as Hau reached for his third pokeball. "Come on, twerp! Pull out a win!"

"Go, Pikachu! Go!"

"Save it for da finals, idiots," Meowth chastised them, but it didn't stop him from silently cheering, it seemed, with Wobbuffet saluting next to him. Hau now took a step forward.

"All right! We'll throw everything we have, including a Pokémon you haven't seen before!" Hau proclaimed. Ash and Pikachu tilted their heads, and then Hau tossed his pokeball forward and on to the battlefield. "Drampa, let's go!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Whew! What a battle! I hope! I really wanted to make Ash vs. Hau to have this exciting energy to it, while still holding the stakes. Obviously, there's a bit more inter-rivalry with Ash and Hau's team and I hope that comes off really well. I certainly hope you enjoyed it and all the buildup leading up to it. Next chapter continues the battle with Hau's final revealed Pokémon: Drampa! It's sure to be exciting and you won't want to miss it!
> 
> I really appreciate all of your words and time for this story! That's why I ask, before the battle continues, that you Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	20. A Sunshine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the last matchup of this battle, I'll admit to using XY&Z to write it for pacing purposes, but I think any fast-paced song will work. That said, time for Chapter 20!

Chapter 20

A Sunshine

Ash was breathing heavily, feeling the slight starting of sweat underneath his cap and vest. Yet he couldn't be happier about it.  _This_  was the kind of battle he enjoyed more than any other. A chance to truly reach out and clash with the person in front of him in a way that harmed neither. Hau provided all of that with a smile on his face. He really was bringing the absolute best to the table, with even Pikachu looking exhausted.

Now, he was to face another Pokémon that Ash had never seen before. Hau had called it a Drampa. Though, as it emerged, it hardly looked like a deadly kind of Pokémon: more like an elderly and wise dragon with a very long neck, colored in a sea green hue, it seemed. However, Ash knew he had to remain on his guard. Pikachu looked back at him, and for a second, he thought of pulling him out.

"Pikapi," Pikachu called back, and the intention was clear. It didn't matter how much damage Pikachu had taken, hit by the Electric type Z-Move under an Electric Terrain while soaked in water, he was willing to do what little bit he could to help the next Pokémon down the line. Ash shook his head with a chuckle…they were all so self-sacrificing.

It was just like him, when he thought about it, doing anything he could to reach out and understand the person in front of him. Just in the same way that Hau's Pokémon were all excited to battle, no matter the outcome, even if their initial dispositions didn't show it. The thought made Ash look up, noticing Gladion there. He wondered just what he'd glean from a battle between them.

"Okay, Pikachu!" Ash said, throwing a palm out as he grinned across to Hau; it was time for the battle to begin. "Use Thunderbolt!"

"Counter that with Dragon Pulse, Drampa! All right!" Hau said, once more jumping up and down with full enthusiasm. It made Ash's blood rush with excitement.

"And Hau is getting right into the action with that Drampa of his!" Kalas called, making the crowd cheer around them. Pikachu was charging up his electricity all around his tiny body, not drawing as much power owing to the disappearance of the Terrain. Then he fired out, the lightning barreling across the field. "This is a Pokémon on his team we haven't seen before! How will the mighty Pikachu stand against it?"

"Rrrrampa!" Drampa called out, its long neck undulating creepily as it opened its mouth. From within that maw shot out a draconic shape, mixed in colors of purple and pink. It soared through the air in a soaring arch. The Thunderbolt slammed into Drampa, though it stayed in place. For the same reason, Pikachu was unable to dodge as the Dragon Pulse hit home, the maw of the dragon practically consuming Pikachu.

"Pi-kaaa!" Pikachu cried, flying back in pain. Ash suddenly clenched a fist, watching as Pikachu did his best to hold on. He skidded on the dead grass while on all fours, panting. "Pi…ka…pi…ka…chu…"

"All right, let's do this with Draco Meteor!" Hau said, throwing a fist high into the air. Ash's eyes widened.

"Pikachu, get moving with Quick Attack and dodge it!" he yelled in response. Pikachu shook his head and his body blazed with white light before taking off across the field. Drampa took to the air, practically flying on what looked like white clouds, each of them more or less surrounding its body. Its neck snapped up high, and an orange glow started at the base of its body before moving through the neck to its mouth. It then fired the energy in the form of a giant orange orb. When that orb reached a zenith in the air, it exploded, raining numerous meteors upon the battlefield.

Pikachu ran swiftly, dodging from side to side as the meteors impacted with the ground, barely dodging some of them. One of them struck the lake, sending water into the air. Ash grit his teeth as he saw Pikachu slowing down, and then a meteor hit the ground in front of him. The dirt blasted out, hitting Pikachu in the eye and causing him to come to a halt. Seconds later, the next meteor hit right on his little body. "Pikachu!"

"Pi…ka…" The dazed and distracted sound told Ash everything that he needed to, though he waited for the call.

"Pikachu is unable to battle! Drampa is the winner!" the referee called. Ash nodded and ran on to the grass. Drampa settled back down to the ground, as Ash bent low to grab Pikachu and carry him back to where he was commanding his team from. With a slight scratching behind his beloved Pokémon's ears, he silently thanked him for all the hard work. Once he'd placed Pikachu down, he turned towards Hau, who had his hands behind his head.

"All right, Hau. You might have taken out Pikachu, but the rest of the team is just as strong!" Ash assured him, gripping at his next pokeball. Hau raised his eyebrows, waiting for the next battle to begin. "We've all been through a lot together, so there's no way we're losing! Lycanroc, I choose you!"

"And Ash chooses Lycanroc! These are each trainer's third Pokémon! When one goes down, it will make the field change!" Ash reached up, gripping at his hat upon hearing Kalas' words.  _We'll make sure we're the next one to take the win. Just have to figure Drampa out…_

"So, let's do this! Lycanroc, Accelerock!" Ash called, punching forward with a fist. Lycanroc howled as she emerged on the field. Her body glowed and she shot forward, almost imperceptible with her immense speed. In seconds, she had reached Drampa, slamming into it and jumping back while it skidded along the ground.

"Dragon Pulse!" Hau said, also punching forward. It was like the two of them were bumping fists together in promise of an intense battle. That told Ash everything about the boy that was his rival. Drampa reared back and fired off the dragon-shaped beam that swirled through the air and aimed for Lycanroc. She wasn't stopping, however, using the immense speed from Accelerock to dodge the attack and once more slam into Drampa's side. Drampa's body rippled for a moment, and then went flying off towards the lake.

However, it stopped itself before it could hit the surface, and Ash's eyes widened. He grinned.

"Lycanroc, use Stone Edge!" he commanded. Lycanroc raised her front paws up and slammed them down. The line of stones raced out, aiming right for Drampa's figure.

"Extrasensory!" Hau called. Drampa's long neck moved quickly, making Ash continue to watch the rather obvious Dragon type. It didn't move its body, but from its kindly eyes, squinted from battle, fired a yellow, conical beam that struck the stones. It broke them apart and, within seconds, had turned them around right on Lycanroc once more. She hunkered down.

"Use Crunch to deflect!" Ash ordered. She growled, her fangs gleaming sharply in her jaw. The stones came near her and she snapped out, breaking them to pieces with her attack. Her speed made it almost impossible for the deflected attack to make any meaningful contact. Drampa, however, was using the move as a distraction, something Ash noticed unfortunately a little later than he'd have liked.

"Yeah, fly over and use Flamethrower!" Hau called out, his body making him look like some kind of boxer as he gave the command. Drampa was well in the air already, mouth opening wide as it cried out. A great torrent of flame gushed forth, spilling along the grass and setting it ablaze, once more, before hitting upon Lycanroc.

"Quick, use Accelerock and get right through it!" Ash called, his eyes flitting all over the place. Hau was trying to control the field again, just like always. It seemed to be his attempt at cultivating a specialty…but it was Ash's as well.

"Laroooo!" Lycanroc howled, her body blazing with light. She then leapt forward, into the air and straight through the gushing flames. It certainly damaged her, but she still managed to get through them and slam into Drampa, sending it careening off through the air. Hau was already prepared with a counterattack.

"Draco Meteor!" Hau called. Drampa now rose higher into the air, the familiar orange glow building up like a zenith inside of it. Then it sent the orb flying out towards the sky, where it exploded, all of the cascading meteors colliding with the field yet again. Drampa seemed to stay away from the lake, as though the water would hinder its movements. Lycanroc was watching the meteors slam on to the field.

"Use Stone Edge and defend yourself," Ash told her calmly. She barked a little, nodding. Then Ash faced forward and the stones shot up all around her, as if to create a powerful shield. The meteors exploded around her, leaving craters in the area. Hau had called another command, but Ash could barely hear it as one of the final meteors blasted into the stones. Ash's eyes narrowed as the stones fell upon his precious Pokémon, but she seemed fine underneath the rubble. The same couldn't be said for the field, as Drampa was rapidly torching it yet again, leaving nowhere to run…at least, that had to have been what Hau thought. "Use Accelerock and blow them all away!"

"Lycrrrra!" Lycanroc growled loudly and then she burst from beneath the rocks. They exploded away from her, rolling through the fires and putting them out just as swiftly as they'd appeared. She started to pick up more speed as some of the rocks flew through the air.

"Drampa, Draco Meteor, one more time!" Hau called. Drampa was almost glaring now, angrily, and its neck raised up, summoning its deadly comets for yet another run at Lycanroc. However, she was quickly on the move, dashing across the momentarily floating stones in the air with her Accelerock, until she'd reached Drampa and slammed into it.

"Dra! Drampah!" Drampa spat out, clearly furious at its attack being interrupted, its body beginning to glow red. It would have been a cause for concern to most trainers, but Ash already had a plan in mind.

"Use Crunch! Grab its neck and send it towards the water!" Ash cried, stepping forward and throwing his hand into the air. Lycanroc acted instantly. As soon as her Accelerock finished, her jaw opened, wide and gleaming, as she grabbed the glowing Drampa's neck. Soon after, she landed safely on the ground and began whirling it around before tossing Drampa towards the lake. Drampa was unable to correct itself or its own position before hitting the water, practically sinking, weighed down by the water surrounding its puffy body. "Finish it with Thunder Fang on the water!"

"Drampa, you've got to-" Whether Hau recognized the futility of his statement, or was simply cut off by the sound of Lycanroc's attack, Ash didn't know. What he  _did_  know, was that Lycanroc's fangs sparked powerfully, and then she plunged her nose into the water. Shocks and voltage traveled all along it, exploding through the water in the same way as Pipi's Z-Move had done. It made the whole air tingle until she stopped her attack and pulled back. Ash waited, and then Drampa floated to the surface.

"D-d-d-dra…"

"Drampa is unable to battle! Lycanroc is the winner!" the referee called out. Ash breathed, while the crowd went wild. As if on the same wavelength, both Ash and Hau grabbed their pokeballs and called their Pokémon back, though for entirely different reasons. Hau was still smiling, though it was slightly saddened as he tucked his pokeball away. There was a shuddering, and the burned field sunk below the floor of the stadium in order to switch out.

"This has been one blow after another between these two trainers, and now that we have a field shift, its sure to get even more exciting as the battle goes on!" Kalas called out. Ash was sure of that, too. Now that Hau was falling behind, there was no doubt he'd step it up in order to pull even once again. Ash looked upwards, towards where all of the big VIP guests were watching. He almost wondered what Kahili thought of his battle, though part of him wondered if Professor Kukui was proud of how far Lycanroc had come.

"Nice job, Lycanroc. Rest up. I'm sure there'll be plenty more for you to fight later," Ash assured her, and then he faced front. The next battlefield was rising up. "Hau, thanks for such a great battle!"

"No problem! I'm having lots of fun," Hau insisted, sticking his hands in his pockets. "That's always what I've viewed battling as, but I'll be honest: battling against you, and people like Gladion, I feel like I've grown a lot. That's why, even if I'm behind, I'm going to make this the most awesome fight I've ever had."

"Me, too!" Ash called. Finally, the field finished moving into place, and Ash realized that it was a large canyon. The walls weren't tremendously wide, and nor was the path very narrow, enough for a large-scale battle to be waged, but it already offered many tactical advantages, if one knew how to use them properly. Breathing in, Ash grabbed his next pokeball while Hau mimicked the action across the field. "Passimian, I choose you!"

"Oranguru, you're up, buddy!" The two pokeballs arched through the air, exploding with light and calling the two simians to the field. Instantly, they both saw each other and glared; a fitting rivalry for the both of them. Ash looked and saw the referee climbing on top of the canyon and settling himself into a safe spot where he could observe the battle. The second half was set to begin, and this time Hau took the first move. "Calm Mind!"

"Passimian, use Double Team!" Across the canyon field, Oranguru sat there, floating in midair as its eyes closed, body glowing red with meditation. Passimian was on the move, forming copies of himself all across the canyon field and walls. Ash's mind was already working, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of any strategy, but there wasn't all that much time left to consider a strategy. He looked to Passimian's berry and grinned. "Now, Shadow Ball!"

"Passi!" Passimian called. Each of his copies threw their berry arms back, even those hanging carefully from the walls. The berry burst and pulsed with shadows all around its form, and then they tossed them right for Oranguru.

"Dodge 'em with your psychic maneuvers! Can't get hit by it no matter what!" Hau called out, giving a little skip and jump. The Shadow Balls all soared out, pelting through the small air of the canyon. Oranguru lifted a little more off the ground and began to float away from the incoming attacks, dodging them. The raven-haired trainer frowned, realizing Hau was up to something if he was just going to have his Pokémon dodge, rather than take advantage of its immunity…or he had already figured out Ash's own strategy. It made that frown twitch slightly to a smile.

Ash looked over to the final Passimian in the group, the real one, and he dashed through his copies, summoning his own Shadow Ball one more time as the berry returned to him, rolling across the field. Then he fired it. This one, Oranguru was unable to escape, slammed by it, the hard, corporeal surface of the berry making the attack effective despite the typing advantage. Ash's eyebrows arched, realizing that Hau  _had_  figured it out: Oranguru may have been immune to Ghost type attacks…but not immune to the blunt force of a Ghost-powered berry, even if said damage didn't seem as strong in comparison, with Oranguru giving only a slight flinch rather than any true show of pain. It was unimportant, in any case, as Hau gave his next command. "All right, use Energy Ball and get rid of all the copies!"

"Orahn…" Oranguru said, fanning its large leaf out. Numerous green orbs that seemed to expand and contract were formed, like an assault barrage. Oranguru fanned the leaf once more and they all fired forward, almost like a gatling that slammed into the copies, dissipating them all quickly. Passimian was also caught by it, hit by the attack and slammed into one of the canyon walls. Or near enough to being slammed into it.

"Use your berry to steady yourself!" Ash called. Passimian's berry arm snapped out, catching hold of his hard berry and slamming it against the wall to stop himself from colliding with the rocky surface. "Now, leap up and use Brick Break!"

"Passi-passimian!" Passimian called, twirling around on his berry and then leaping into the air, his free hand glowing a bright white. He sent it screaming down, aiming right for Oranguru's head as quickly as could be done.

"Foul Play!" Hau ordered out. Oranguru seemed to grin a little smugly, placing its leaf upon its lap as its arms moved out. As Passimian nearly made contact, Oranguru grabbed hold of the lemur and sent it flying with a mighty swing. Passimian now definitely slammed into the wall, crying out, but quickly recovering.

"Now, use Shadow Ball!" Ash called, throwing his arm out. There was a distinct disadvantage they were at here, but he wasn't giving up just yet. Passimian recovered and leapt outward, his berry pulsing with the same shadows that he flung out. The attack struck dead on this time, impacting with the extreme blunt force of the berry's strike on Oranguru's chest, though the Sage Pokémon wasn't done.

"Oranguru hangs in there," Kalas announced, sounding breathy before Hau could issue his next command. "Shadow Ball may be immune, but that berry force is looking to do some adequate work on its own. If Passimian keeps it up, there could be an upset here!"

"Psychic, bring it down!" Hau said, drowning out any more of Kalas' commentary. He looked giddy, and Ash could tell he was excited by how the fortunes of battle had changed. It certainly wasn't looking good as Passimian's body suddenly glowed blue and then he was brought crashing down upon the ground, bouncing around it, away from his opponent. Oranguru floated forward. Ash felt his lips twitch with a smile.

"Move back!" Ash called out, sweeping his hand out yet again. "Keep firing Shadow Ball after Shadow Ball as you move back! Any direction you possibly can!"

"Simi!" Passimian acknowledged. Instead of using his berry as it rolled across the canyon floor to him, like a boomerang, he formed the shadowy orb in his free hand and sent it flying. He kept up the continuous stream of those same orbs, while leaping back with every single one fired. With every strike, some hit the canyon walls and gathered up small chunks of rock to hit upon Oranguru, while others didn't pass through any of the rock and merely phased through the Sage Pokémon. No matter what it did, it was still moving closer, as if it needed to be within a certain range for any kind of Psychic to take effect. Whatever it was, Oranguru had moved neatly inside the canyon. Ash and Passimian both grinned.

"Now, Close Combat on the canyon walls! Use Double Team to really make it happen!" Ash cried, throwing a fist high up in the air with a grin. Passimian nodded, body tensing for the next part of the fight as his copies sprung up all around the place on the canyon floor. They all made it to the walls and began pummeling them powerfully, kicking and punching at the rock face. It shuddered, and then the rocks broke apart from the walls in large chunks, beginning to rain down upon Oranguru. The first few hit the unexpectant Psychic type.

"Use Psychic and move them around!" Hau ordered out. Ash's grin widened, though Hau couldn't see it, thankfully. He had hoped that Hau would pull something just like that. Oranguru's eyes glowed blue and the rocks stopped hurtling themselves at him. Instead, they began to whirl around it momentarily, before blasting into the canyon, aiming for the copies. The real Passimian, however, was already moving.

"Brick Break!" Ash commanded. Passimian suddenly appeared behind Oranguru, having used his doubles to do so, and brought his open palm screaming into Oranguru's back. "Now, Shadow Ball!"

"Simian!" Passimian chittered out, swiping his berry from the ground and plunging it into Oranguru's back with shadowy wisps firing out, despite not being the cause of the damage. The Sage Pokémon flew forward, but righted itself using its Psychic prowess.

"All right, fire an Energy Ball upwards!" Hau called. Oranguru once more grabbed its leaf, and the green orb formed at the tips of it. Their opponent waved it upward and the green orb flew up just the same. "Now, use Psychic!"

"Passimian, back away quickly!" Ash called, but it proved to be little use. Already. Oranguru's eyes were flashing blue, leaving no room for escape as Passimian was trapped, surrounded by that blue Psychic aura. He was then thrown upwards, straight into the now descending Energy Ball, gaining speed and power with every foot it was dropping. It collided with Passimian's body and exploded with green powder, causing Ash to wait a moment for the result…until Passimian dropped, hitting the canyon floor, unmoving.

"Passimian is unable to battle! Oranguru is the winner!" the referee called from his perch. Ash sighed out, blocking out the crowd as they grew louder and louder in their cheers for their "sunshine boy". The raven-haired trainer had to smile, nonetheless. They'd been at a disadvantage, and still, Passimian had made a dent in Oranguru's armor before falling to the well-advised assault. The opposing Pokémon, despite looking rather Zen about it all, also seemed to have subtle movements that suggested the battle was taking a toll. Hau had also dropped some of his more exuberant movements.

"The score is evened! Ash and Hau are now tied for Pokémon! How will the battle fare from here on out!" Kalas cried. Ash breathed out, taking his pokeball and returning Passimian.

"We'll build on it, all thanks to you, Passimian. Sorry you couldn't get your own kind of revenge, but I've got just the partner in mind to finish it up for you! I think you'll approve! Kommo-o, I choose you!" Ash cried out, sending his mighty dragon out, slamming onto the field with a loud roar that pierced the air. There was murmuring in the crowd, as if they were surprised he'd pick another Pokémon with a disadvantage, but he still wasn't worried. He was planning on making this battle his own. "Clanging Scales!"

"Kommo!" Kommo-o cried out, his scales quivering with a loud noise. The scales fired off, emitting their powerful soundwaves that were causing the canyon walls to erode bit by bit as they battered Oranguru mercilessly. It couldn't move fast enough to avoid the wide-range attack. Ash pressed the advantage.

"X-Scissor, move in!" he called, sending a fist up. Kommo-o grunted with a nod and crossed his arms as he ran, glowing a bright purple cross shape while he charged down the canyon. Ash knew they'd have to be careful, in case Hau wanted to use Psychic, but it didn't seem to be any good option for a moment after their latest assault.

"Energy Ball!" Hau ordered out. His body movements were more controlled, showing that the more they got into the battle, the more serious  _he_  was getting. It really was his rival at his very best. Oranguru formed the green orb and sent it soaring outward. Kommo-o kept charging, slicing right through the opposing attack and uncrossing his arms as he reached their opponent, slashing across its figure.

"Now, Poison Jab!"

"Foul Play!" Hau called, his foot stepping forward. Kommo-o jabbed forward with a purple glowing fist, only to have his arm caught. Oranguru then lifted Kommo-o up and slammed him into the ground behind it. Ash grimaced, but wasn't giving up yet.

"Use Sky Uppercut!" Ash quickly commanded. Kommo-o snapped up in seconds, his shining fist traveling upward with his body, straight into a punch that knocked Oranguru into the air, spinning and flipping with little control. That didn't last long, the simian righting itself with Psychic, but it was enough for Kommo-o to already recover. "Now, Clanging Scales, one more time!"

"Mohhhhh!" Kommo-o roared out. His scales quivered yet again, the sound this time continuing to shake the canyon walls as more stones crumbled away, raining down on the ground. However, his target was up in the air, and that was where the scales fired to, soaring outward, impacting powerfully with Oranguru as they exploded without mercy, ripples of the soundwaves distorting its figure.

"Stop it with Psychic!" Hau ordered, punching a fist forward. Oranguru's eyes snapped open, glowing blue. It floated downward, battered by more of the scales and sounds, but managing to get itself within range of Kommo-o. The Scaly Pokémon glowed its own brand of blue, the attacks halting, and he was then sent slamming against the canyon wall, breaking off another large chunk of it. "Now, Energy Ball!"

"Guroh…" Oranguru said slowly, though its movements were quick. With a quick fan of its leaf, the green orb formed and fired, slamming into the prone Kommo-o. Ash watched the dust begin to clear, but he didn't need it in order to know that his loyal Dragon type was fine to keep fighting, if roughed up.

"Go and use X-Scissor!" Ash called. Kommo-o blasted from the dust and smoke, crossing his arms in the same cross shape from before. He placed a leg on the canyon wall and kicked off, sending him soaring and spinning through the air on a collision course for Oranguru.

"Beef up your defenses with Calm Mind!" Hau called, clearly hoping for a last-ditch defense effort, for all the good that it did. Kommo-o soared through the air, even as Oranguru closed its eyes. The effort amounted to nothing as Kommo-o reached his opponent, well before the meditation was complete, and drilled forward before slashing outwards, the purple slashes erupting from the Sage Pokémon's body. Oranguru's eyes popped wide open, just before it went spiraling downward and collided with the canyon wall. It only took a second longer before Oranguru peeled off said wall and fell down, collapsing on the floor, finally showing that the damage it had taken hadn't been easily sloughed off.

"Oranguru is unable to battle! Kommo-o is the winner!" The crowd gave another enormous cheer at that. Ash was once more ahead, and despite the love for both of them, the crowd seemed to enjoy seeing him pull ahead…or maybe it was just that one of them had done so in their rather back and forth battle. Kommo-o shook his head, looking a little tired, so Ash grabbed his pokeball.

"Come back, Kommo-o. We'll save you for a different battle," Ash assured him. His pokeball jiggled a little in his hand, just as Hau called Oranguru back and picked his next pokeball. Ash looked across at the boy, smiling at him. He did the same, and Ash watched him, reading every aspect of him. Hau was rather simple to understand. "All right, Lycanroc, I choose you!"

"Come on, Glaceon!" Both trainers sent their pokeballs sky high, calling out their team members. Lycanroc's picture moved to the forefront of the screen for Ash, while Glaceon appeared for Hau's. Said Glaceon trotted forward, looking surprisingly fierce and ready for battle. Lycanroc just hunkered down, ready for another intense battle. "All right, Quick Attack!"

"Accelerock!" Ash called. Both boys threw their hands out at the order. Their Pokémon, likewise, blazed with bright white light and barreled down the canyon at immense speed, heading for an imminent clash. They met in the middle, slamming against one another before breaking apart and moving to connect their similar attacks once more.

"Hail!" Hau ordered, throwing his hand up into the sky. That was certainly a rather unexpected move, and Lycanroc backed off, almost whimpering a bit.

"Ceooooooon!" Glaceon called out. Clouds formed over the canyon and little ice chunks began to rain down, making Lycanroc flinch a bit from it. She shook her mane, looking disturbed, while Glaceon appeared to melt into the haze of ice, unable to be seen.

"Hit 'em with Blizzard!" Hau said, taking his fist in the air and punching it forward. Glaceon appeared on the side of the canyon, near to the walls, and opened its mouth wide. Then a harrowing gale of ice blasted out, freezing parts of the canyon walls and beginning to engulf Lycanroc. Ash wasn't going to let that happen.

"Use Stone Edge to stop it!" Ash ordered quickly. Lycanroc broke her paws free of the forming ice, and slammed them down. The stones encircled her rapidly, the Blizzard now freezing the stones instead of herself. Lycanroc still looked disturbed by the hail hitting upon her, especially as Glaceon leapt upwards.

"Water Pulse!" Hau called out. An orb of water formed at Glaceon's mouth and it whipped its head, sending the water raining right upon Lycanroc's back. She howled out and whipped around to face Glaceon, while her stones crumbled away. The Fresh Snow Pokémon, however, had vanished entirely.

"Lycanroc, don't panic," Ash called out to her, making her turn in his direction. "Use your other senses and don't worry about the hail. Sniff it out and smell for it."

"Rocrrrrr," Lycanroc grunted and she closed her eyes. Ash could sense her sniffing for Glaceon, listening for the soft patter of her feet amidst the falling hail. Then, her eyes snapped open amidst the storm and she grinned.

"Yes! Use Stone Edge!" Lycanroc howled, her mane glowing bright and a single spire of stone suddenly erupted in the middle of the battlefield. Glaceon gave a cry, and Ash saw it flung into the air, the stone having impacted powerfully with its underside. "Now, move in with Thunder Fang!"

"Stop it with Water Pulse!" Lycanroc and Glaceon both moved on an instant collision course with one another. The wolf's fangs sparked with electricity, while Glaceon skidded on the canyon ground, forming an orb of water. Lycanroc was the faster when it came to attacking, colliding with Glaceon in a burst of voltage as her fangs made contact. It also left her wide open enough for the Water Pulse to impact against her prone figure. "Now, Blizzard!"

"Glaceeeee!" Glaceon cried out, leaping away from Lycanroc and sending a harrowing cluster of snow out. That snow and wind whirled around the canyon, quickly freezing Lycanroc's drenched fur, traveling up her legs and locking her in place until she was completely consumed, locked into the ice.

"Keep it up with Water Pulse and Quick Attack!" Glaceon acted instantly, and Ash looked to find a way to free Lycanroc. The orb of water struck her body and then she was battered from the other side by a charging, shining Glaceon. Lycanroc twitched within the ice, her jaw moving slightly, if not the rest of her body. There was a chance.

"Lycanroc, use Crunch as quickly as you can!" Ash ordered. Lycanroc's jaw began moving, sawing up and down as if she was chewing at the ice. Bit by bit it began to crack, even as Glaceon impacted with another Quick Attack. Above them, the snow cloud of hail was starting to shrink. Finally, the ice around Lycanroc's snout broke away. "Now, use Accelerock!"

"Lycrrrroooooh!" There was a loud cracking sound, and then, as Lycanroc's body burst with powerful light, the ice was flung away. She charged forward, towards an unsuspecting Glaceon, and impacted with it. Glaceon slammed into the wall, but managed to get on to its feet, shaking its head as the hail faded away. Lycanroc was panting a little, tongue hanging out but still ready for the fight.

"All right, let's finish this with a Stone Edge and Thunder Fang!" Ash called. Lycanroc howled one more time, stones erupting around her in large pillars. She struck forward with electrified jaws that made the stones crackle with that same electricity, before she whipped around, bringing her tail against them and knocking them forward towards Glaceon, each of them sparking with the voltage of Thunder Fang.

"One more time! Water Pulse!" Hau called out. Glaceon quickly whipped her head forward, sending the large and glistening orb of water out for Lycanroc. Both attacks passed by each other and soon Lycanroc was hit by the watery attack, flying back. Likewise, Glaceon was battered by the sparking rocks that caused an explosion from the electricity. They each flew into a side of the canyon wall, causing chunks to break off until both of the combatants slid to the canyon floor.

"Lycanroc and Glaceon are both unable to battle!" the referee called out, simply upon seeing the two Pokémon passed out on the ground. The crowd really cheered at that one. A tie…and one that would lead in to Hau's final Pokémon no less. There was definitely reason to get excited. Both trainers reached for their pokeballs and returned their fallen Pokémon.

"It's really come down to it! Ash is in the lead with two Pokémon, while Hau still has one remaining! How will this battle go? I'm on the edge of my seat while my fellow commentators are just speechless from this display of battle!" Kalas called. Ash and Hau glanced across at each other. He knew just what was coming, and though he could have brought out his freshest Pokémon, he also wanted to give everyone their second chance to shine, and continue the battle longer, Hau granting him too much fun to let it end so quickly. So, he grabbed for Kommo-o. " _This_  is what League battles are all about! The passion! The fervor! Let's let the finale of the semifinals commence!"

"Let's end this, Incineroar!" Hau called out. His grin had returned, even as it was filled with determination and a slight bit of trepidation over the possible incoming result. The capture device exploded, revealing the fiery cat leaping on to the ground. Likewise, Kommo-o appeared once again. His picture moved forward, just as Incineroar's appeared on the scoreboard.

"Let's just do the best we can," Ash called to his Pokémon. Kommo-o still looked roughed up from his battle against Oranguru, and Ash could only hope the Scaly Pokémon would hold on long enough to give him the measure of understanding Hau and Incineroar's combination before bringing out the one who truly wanted to fight them. "So, come on! Sky Uppercut!"

"Kohm!" Kommo-o called, his fist glowing brightly with a white blaze. He charged forward as Incineroar grinned, flexing his fingers. Kommo-o reached him in no time and swung upward, but missed entirely.

"Darkest Lariat!" Hau called out. Incineroar's arm swung out, wreathed in a black flame, it seemed. He slammed into Kommo-o, sending the dragon careening into the canyon wall. "Now, Cross Chop!"

"Counter with Poison Jab!" Kommo-o recovered as Incineroar gave a mighty bellow and sent his Fighting type move at him. The dragon's purple limbs snapped out and batted the attack away, before aiming for Incineroar's exposed chest. That was blocked by the other half of the Cross Chop, until their fists met.

"Shadow Claw!" Hau called. Incineroar's fist cracked knuckles a bit, a giant grin on his face as the shadowy substance wreathed his claws, extending its range. Then, he slashed out, striking right across Kommo-o and knocking him to the side.

"X-Scissor! Come on!" Ash yelled out. Kommo-o used his tail to stabilize himself, crossing both of his arms like a cross and stampeding forward. Incineroar turned and the attack slammed into him. However, Hau yelled out a quick order and the large cat's arms snapped out to hold Kommo-o in place, even as he continued his assault upon him.

"Darkest Lariat!" Incineroar growled ferally and his arms were wreathed in black flames again, before searing out and hitting Kommo-o across the head. Like a true wrestler, he carried him forward and drove his opponent straight into the canyon wall. The stones broke off suddenly as Incineroar stepped back. The large cat watched as those same stones collapsed on Kommo-o's head as the fallen Dragon type groaned. Ash exhaled, but nodded. He had gotten a good measure of their hands-on, close-combat brawling combination.

"Kommo-o is unable to battle! Incineroar is the winner!"

"It's close! The end of the battle is close! Only one Pokémon remains on each side! Who will win this intense final battle? Who will move on to the final round? Most importantly…will whoever the victor is here be able to stand up against Gladion and his mighty Silvally?" Kalas' words made Ash look up to Gladion, still watching the ongoing battle intently. In fact, all eyes were truly upon their battle and the finale of it that was incoming. However, in that moment, Ash could only look to Hau as he returned Kommo-o and grabbed for his final pokeball.

"Hau. Thank you." Hau blinked, as if surprised by the show of gratitude. "Before I came to Alola, I was…getting over some things. Sure, I was okay and all, not letting it get me depressed…but, seeing you, battling you as you never let anything get you down…it made me happy. It made me really enjoy and appreciate the ability to do that without any regrets. So, thank you."

"You, too!" Hau said, grinning as he put his hands behind his head. "I always wanted to have friends and lots of fun…you were able to do that for me, while showing me how serious I needed to be, even if I didn't always show it. I appreciate every battle and challenge we had for that. So…let's not leave any regrets, right Incineroar?"

"Gaoooooor!" Incineroar screamed to the crowd. They whipped themselves into a frenzy at the theatrical battler, while Ash also grinned. None of the crowd members had seen his final Pokémon yet, and it was sure to be one exciting battle. He agreed with Hau fully. Win or lose, it didn't matter, because they'd both walked away with something, understanding each other and their Pokémon both, fully and completely.

"Decidueye, I choose you!" The pokeball exploded with light, his powerful Grass type appearing on the field with an energized hoot. Instantly, Incineroar's body language changed, while Decidueye remained alert. The two rivals, just as their trainers were, appeared ready to face off in the final battle.

Ash and Hau breathed in, wiping a little sweat from their brows, the former adjusting his hat a little. It was time. Their gazes locked and they grinned once more, shouting loudly. "LET'S GO!"

"Decidueye, Leaf Blade!" Ash called. Decidueye raced forward, drawing two green swords from his body, rushing through the canyon, right for Incineroar.

"Shadow Claw! Block it!" Incineroar now dashed down along the canyon, as well, with heavy footfalls, both claws wreathed in shadow. The two collided, swiping claws and swords as they clashed. One of Decidueye's swords got caught on the claws, holding it in place.

"Acrobatics!" Ash roared out. Decidueye flipped, kicking out as he glowed blue. Incineroar stumbled backwards as the blow landed against his jaw, causing the blades to break free. Decidueye, likewise, leapt backwards, just out of range of any incoming strike.

"Darkest Lariat!" Hau called, pointing forward. Incineroar bellowed, both of his arms bursting with black flames. He swung right at Decidueye powerfully. Ash quickly dipped low, his hand touching the stadium floor.

"Dodge it, and use Frenzy Plant!" he yelled out.

"Kooroo!" Decidueye affirmed. He leapt back, almost like a wisp of shadow, to avoid the blow. As he did so, his wing swept on the ground. Like an explosion of power, the roots broke through the stone and shot out, whipping at the sides of the canyon as they aimed straight for Incineroar.

"Cross Chop through it!" Hau called. Incineroar crossed his arms and ran towards the incoming plants. He sliced outward, breaking them in half and causing them to split apart, falling to the ground as he grinned. "Now, Flare Blitz, get some air!"

"Grrrrrao!" Incineroar growled out. His body sputtered with flames, bursting from his waist to all around his body. The plants began to converge on him yet again, but as the flames exploded outward, they were blasted away. Ash smirked a little, seeing that Decidueye had disappeared entirely from the battlefield, hiding in the remains of his plants as he leapt to the top on the canyon. Incineroar shot straight up, as well, like a blazing rocket that burned away the Frenzy Plant and brought him on top of the canyon walls.

"Acrobatics, let's go!" Ash called. Decidueye appeared out of thin air, before Incineroar could expect it. He flipped forward, sending the force of Long Reach rippling out in order to slam into the Heel Pokémon. He recoiled as Decidueye flitted closer, swinging his talon out.

"Catch it!" Hau called. Incineroar appeared to have read it all too accurately, his claws flashing out and grabbing ahold of the Arrow Quill Pokémon. Decidueye struggled a moment. "Now, Shadow Claw!"

"Desaii!" Decidueye hissed out as the shadowy appendage slammed into him and flung him upwards. He used his wings to quickly stop himself from falling, shaking his head to show that he was okay.

"Great! Now, Spirit Shackle, rapid fire!" Ash called, swinging his fists around. Decidueye drew back, pulling on his ghostly arrow and drawstring with his wings. Hau yelled a command for Incineroar to get moving. Decidueye slowly descended, but still fired off arrow after arrow. Those arrows landed in the ground as Incineroar dodged them all, creating small puffs of ghostly explosions as they connected.

"Now, Darkest Lariat!"

"Block it with Leaf Blade!" Ash cried. Incineroar charged right for Decidueye, almost spinning, both arms blazing with dark flames. Likewise, Decidueye acted, pulling out his swords of grassy energy. He slashed forward, the two colliding with one another. Decidueye pressed his advantage and slashed forward, pushing Incineroar away from him. "Now, Frenzy Plant!"

"Kooroo!" Decidueye hooted powerfully, sweeping his wing along the ground quickly. The Frenzy Plant shot out, writhing and undulating. Ash could already tell what move Hau would order next as the plants made a beeline for Incineroar. The crowd could barely contain their enthusiasm. Incineroar chopped outward with his fists, cutting them away, but as Decidueye vanished inside his mess of plants at the top of the canyon, Ash had a different idea.

"Leaf Blade, throw it!" he commanded. From within the bevy of exposed roots, Decidueye tossed his Leaf Blade, the attack slicing across Incineroar, who was still chopping. The attack, and resultant damage, distracted him, and one of the roots snapped into his jaw. "Now, Acrobatics!"

"Watch out for it!" Hau's command was a little too late. Decidueye was far faster than Incineroar, appearing behind the large cat in seconds. He kicked out, this time not even bothering with Long Reach to slam into his opponent and send him stumbling forward. "Shadow Claw!"

"Groooar!" came the roar. Decidueye kicked out again with his blue body, just as the shadowy claw came screaming out. The two connected and impacted. They quickly became a flurry of whirling claws and talons, matching against one another as their faces got close with a grin on both of their mouths. They were definitely enjoying themselves in their final duel. Ash ducked low, plunging his hand to the ground as his legs stretched themselves.

"Frenzy Plant!" he commanded.

"Flare Blitz!" was Hau's counter-command. Both Pokémon acted instantly. Decidueye's wing swept the ground, once more sending the powerful roots soaring outward, just as Incineroar's entire body blazed with flames. He charged into the vines, blasting them apart and making them burn. It almost seemed to make his body faster as he hurtled, like a missile, right for Decidueye. Ash grimaced as Incineroar reached his target and practically tackled him.

"Decidueye!" Ash called out in concern. Incineroar reached a flaming hand out and grabbed hold of his Pokémon. However, the Arrow Quill Pokémon's attention snapped to, a powerful glint in his eyes. "Yes! Use Acrobatics and Leaf Blade! Break free!"

"Koorai!" Decidueye hooted out. His talon came soaring up with a blue glow, once more pushing against Incineroar's chest powerfully. The cat's hold loosened, allowing Decidueye a chance to snap his wings out and break free, leaping up into the air. He summoned two blades of green and threw them outward, the swords hurtling at Incineroar and striking him to prevent pursuit. One of them struck him on the head.

"Now, Spirit Shackle!" came the follow-up command. In midair, Decidueye pulled back on his drawstring, forming the arrow and sending it flying. Incineroar recovered, hearing Hau's command for a dodge. He moved, though wasn't fast enough to avoid the attack entirely, the move ripping across one of his arms and preventing it from moving. "Leaf Blade, throw them!"

"Block 'em with Cross Chop!" Hau ordered back. Decidueye whirled around in midair, grabbing ahold of multiple swords and throwing them rapidly, one after the other. Incineroar raised his lone working arm and began to slash back and forth with a feral grin, knocking the blades away as rapidly as he could, until no more were coming. Decidueye touched back down on the ground again, and Ash was already on the move.

"Frenzy Plant! Surf it straight over!" The second Decidueye touched down, he hooted, sending the plants ripping out. This time, they didn't move to attack Incineroar, but instead served as a ferry for Decidueye to ride straight over. In no time, he reached his opponent. "Now, Acrobatics!"

"Catch it again!" Hau called. Ash grinned even wider; he figured Hau would do exactly that. Decidueye kicked outwards as Incineroar's claws snapped out, grabbing his leg. It was a perfect setup for what Ash wanted to do.

"Now, Spirit Shackle, straight down!" Ash called. Hau's eyes widened, as though realizing his own folly of what he'd ordered. Decidueye's body snapped upwards, curling around Incineroar's form as he drew his string and nocked his arrow. He aimed straight down at Incineroar's head and fired. The attack impacted, causing a ghostly explosion that forced the Heel Pokémon to let go of Decidueye, who was acting in seconds. "Leaf Blade!"

"Incineroar!" Hau cried out, but it did little good. Decidueye made a cross slash as he blasted past Incineroar, who attempted to turn, but was locked into place by the Spirit Shackle. The green bloom of the Leaf Blade erupted across Incineroar's chest.

"Sorry, Hau! This has been an amazing and awesome battle! I've gotten to know you a lot better, and the same with your whole team! But I made a promise to move on to the finals to lots of people! So, thanks for everything! Here's  _our_  gift as a Z-Move!" Ash called out and he crossed his wrists. Decidueye did the same before uncrossing and raising them in a ghostly fashion. The power of the Z-Move circulated in and around Decidueye, who leapt to the air, power surging around him. He spread his wings and numerous arrows appeared all over the area, aiming in towards Incineroar. "Sinister Arrow Raid!"

"Ahh!" Hau almost choked out at the sight, dropping his smile for real, and for the first time in their battle. Then Decidueye flapped his wings and soared down, all of the arrows moving with him. They fired rapidly, impacting all over Incineroar's body until Decidueye finally raced through with those that remained. As he did so, the air exploded around Incineroar while the Arrow Quill Pokémon landed softly, without a sound and turning back to his rival (despite the tired look in his eyes, though with a definite will to keep fighting if need be). Ash waited for the explosion of dust to settle.

When it did, Incineroar was still standing. He wasn't moving, either, though. The entire crowd appeared to hold their breath while the referee seemed to stand and look closer. Still, Incineroar did not move as the man raised his hand.

"Incineroar is unable to battle! Decidueye is the winner, so the victory goes to Ash!"

"WHAT. A. BATTLE!" Kalas' voice roared out. Ash almost fell back, and Hau did just that. He fell straight on his butt and grinned, even though he'd lost the battle. Ash had to laugh, as just beside him, Pikachu stirred. "This was beyond intense, and it was only the semifinals!"

"Which means tomorrow brings an amazing conclusion to the first ever Alola League!" Maika called out. If it was possible, the crowd got even more excited from that statement alone. Ash just couldn't figure out anything to say, breathing in relief over the result. He had kept his promise. His eyes flitted upwards, right towards Gladion. The blond was standing, but he was staring straight at him. Ash nodded.

_We'll meet tomorrow…in the finals!_  Barely even thinking, Ash raised his fist straight into the air in his sign of victory. There was a great cheer from one section of the crowd, and Ash turned to see all of his friends there, on their feet and cheering (except for Gary, who was just offering a lazy smirk). In particular, he settled on Clemont, who appeared to be shaking, though it might have been Korrina's fault, considering her rough action of jerking him back and forth by the shoulders. Then he saw Lillie, clapping with a smile on her face, as if glad they had both enjoyed the battle. Ash just breathed out, unable to think of much else to say about her until he noticed his girlfriend. Serena was smiling with her eyes, showing how happy she was that he had made it to this point once again.

Behind them were all the others, even a remarkably chummy Sawyer and Seamus, who seemed beyond thrilled. Ash just reached up to take his hat off, running his hand through his hair in relief, feeling it line itself with sweat. It  _had_ been quite the battle. As he turned away, Ash caught a sight of Dawn and May actually hugging each other with tears, seemingly yelling "I can't believe he made the finals" while next to them, Misty and Iris had their mouths hanging open and Brock nodded. There was also Alain, the hunger for battle in his eyes once again as Mairin clapped alongside Astrid, doing the same as the younger girl. However, their faces soon faded from view as he turned away.

"Indeed! I can only imagine the kind of matchup we'll see for the ultimate title of Alola League Champion tomorrow!" Kalas concluded for the woman from earlier, bringing Ash back into the moment. "The only thing I know is that you want to miss  _any_  of tomorrow's events! Ash versus Gladion right here in the morning! I know it's a fight  _I_  can't wait to see!"

"Pikapi," Pikachu suddenly chirped out, crawling up to Ash's shoulder. At the same time, Ash turned and saw Decidueye arriving, his shoulders slumping a bit, but only a bit; they had still managed to win rather handily. Ash ruffled Pikachu's fur while throwing an arm around Decidueye.

"That's right! We did it! We beat Hau!" Ash said to the both of them with a wide grin. Decidueye threw a wing out, looking positively pleased over the result. "Now there's just that last battle tomorrow, so we and the others have to make sure that we give it our all, okay? No holding back!"

"Pikapika!" Pikachu agreed, flexing his fist. Decidueye nearly collapsed right then, deep in the midst of his cheers. It had been an easier win than most would have had against Hau's Incineroar, but the toll of battle was still catching up to him, merely having been delayed. Ash just chuckled and returned him quickly. He also noticed that Hau had finally stood and returned Incineroar as well. Ash had to admit, despite Incineroar's loss, he had been one of the best competing Pokémon there, standing tall even in defeat.

"Pikachu, I'll be counting on you tomorrow most of all! We'll be facing Silvally, after all," Ash noted. Pikachu returned the look with a glint in his eyes and Ash stepped out onto the canyon. As he strode forward, he noticed Hau doing the same, throwing his hands behind his head. For one last second before they met, Ash turned his eyes and mind to Gladion again. It would be about more than just beating Gladion the next day, but with Pikachu at his side, he knew he could do it.

"Man, that was the best battle I've ever had!" Hau laughed out as the two met in the middle of the canyon. "You really drove me and my team to the end."

"Same here. You're a great trainer, Hau…and an even better friend!" Ash admitted, rubbing at his nose with a little chuckle. "I meant every word I said. I'm glad I got to know you."

"Hey, we're not sayin' goodbye yet!" Hau said suddenly throwing an arm around Ash with his usual grin. "Gotta say, sucks that I lost, but if I could see you win the finals tomorrow, that would be so super awesome! And then we've still got the Day of Stars, huh? I'm sure we'll be battlin' a lot more yet."

"Only this time, we'll be on the same side!" Ash said, holding his non-pinned fist out. Hau's grin extended, almost past where it should have been allowed to go, and he bumped his fist against Ash's own. They shared a laugh.

"Yeah…I'm really gonna do my best, and protect everyone I care about," Hau declared, continuing to hold his fist against Ash's.

"Me, too," Ash admitted. The two separated from one another, yet started to walk off the battlefield together, to the sounds of the roaring and approving crowd. It almost even sounded like Kalas was crying, with Maika trying to tell him to get ahold of himself at "such a beautiful display of brotherly friendship!".

Ash ignored it, his mind now turning back towards what was to come. He looked to Pikachu, and they both nodded. Tomorrow would finally be the finals of the Alola League. Whether he won or lost didn't matter, only keeping his promise and the reason he'd found for coming here: he was going to understand Gladion and, just maybe, reconnect with him, like they had that day outside Brooklet Hill.

And then, it would all come forward, and the Day of Stars would begin. Knowing that, Ash continued on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Yes, this entire chapter was the remainder of the Ash and Hau battle…well, pretty much. Originally, it was going to have more to it, but when I saw the chapter closing at 8,000 words I decided that this was enough, overall. I hope it was very entertaining and exciting and intense and all of those other things thrown into the mix! Next chapter we have some stuff and the finals against Gladion will begin!
> 
> We're now entering the final third of this story so things are picking up for the entire trilogy! I hope that you'll all Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	21. A Final

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The match you've probably all been waiting for starts now. Hopefully it's up to expectations. Time for Chapter 21!

Chapter 21

A Final

"Today's battles were beyond exciting, wouldn't you say, Maika?" called the voice of Kalas from the television screen at the Pokémon Center. Ash turned his head to look, letting it offer a reprieve from all the madness around him. The Center was absolutely packed!

"Very much so! As I've said before, they offer quite a different fare of battle from those in Ceremonies," the commentator and announcer for the Leilani Ceremonies said in response. The two of them were both on the screen, like a couple of newscasters, discussing the state of the Alola League thus far. "However, I really love the intensity that they offer. Have  _you_  seen battles this intense before?"

"I've seen quite a few in my time," Kalas said with a look of musing. Ash almost had to wonder if he was referring to the Kalos Team Tournament, in a sense, but the man didn't clarify for any of the watching audience. "However, today's semifinal matches simply made me very excited for what the final battle tomorrow will bring. We truly have two heavyweight contenders. Of course, the topic that's rampant amongst the Champions and Kahunas is, of course: will anyone be able to take Silvally down?"

"Yes, that is the definite buzz," Maika stated. The picture on the screen shifted to show all of the Champions from the other regions sitting and watching what seemed to be Gladion's battle from earlier that day. If Ash was honest, he'd completely forgotten they were even attending the League, making him wonder just how closely they'd be watching him tomorrow when he hadn't even noticed (and whether they'd been paying close attention to him or others during their stay, as well). More images on the screen appeared, consisting of Silvally, which Ash and Pikachu watched closely. "It's gone undefeated so far, no matter the number of opponents it's taken on, making the rest of Gladion's team have quite the chance to rest up."

"Well, the one thing we know for sure is that if Ash Ketchum wants to have any hope of taking home the trophy, he'll have to topple Gladion's Silvally and its mysterious powers. Though, he's no slouch, either, after his handy victory against Hau earlier today," Kalas laughed out. Ash's lips twitched. He had every intention of being the one to bring Silvally down in battle.

"Ash, come on! The celebration is all ready!" Hau's voice called across the Center, officially drawing Ash's attention to the boy. He wasn't alone; not by any means. In fact, Ash was almost certain that  _everyone_  was there…or thereabouts, giving a reason for why the Center was so packed with people. For some reason, making your way to the finals when you'd done it once before was a big thing. Ash wasn't about to take it for granted, though.

"You guys didn't have to do all this, but thanks!" Ash said, walking forward with Pikachu. There was a dinging sound from the backroom of the Center and Nurse Joy opened the door to allow the rest of his team to step forward in rather cheerful states. They all dove right for him with cheers of joy. "Glad to see you're all lively, too!"

"Koorooroo!" Decidueye hooted out all too happily. He swept his wings around Ash in an almost smothering hug while the others all piled on him. Ash started to laugh.

"I know! But we've still got the next battle, tomorrow! Gladion won't be a pushover!" Ash assured them. They didn't seem to care all that much, reveling in the day's victory, though Ash knew they'd be just as ready for tomorrow and that battle that lay ahead. Knowing that, he looked up at all those gathered in the Center, with his friends having pretty much taken over the entire location, nary a trainer able to enter.

Of course, it had only been a couple hours since the match had ended, but that didn't mean Serena, Lillie, Brock and Cilan (who Ash had almost forgotten was there) hadn't spent quite the amount of effort in preparing a spread for everyone to eat and enjoy from the Center's kitchen. May was already helping herself, with Chespin at her side as Clemont and Korrina attempted to pull the little one away. Rotom was busy annoying some of the others that were there, particularly Seamus…at least until he, Sawyer, Rocky and Astrid figured out that it had recorded the entire semifinal battle against Hau, and looked to pull things up on the Pokédex within seconds.

Of course, there was more than even that group standing around and chatting as Ash noticed Miette calmly speaking with Bethany, Christopher and, to Ash's surprise, Mairin. From the snippets of conversation that Ash had heard, it sounded like Mairin had been trying her hand at Showcases since the season had started up once more, but had yet to win any Princess Keys.

"Alain's not exactly the best help when it comes to fancy moves…" she admitted with a sigh. Alain, from his distance away, seemed to tense up at the mention of that. Though, Ash had a feeling it might have had to do with the fact that he was talking to Paul, who could make anyone rather prickly. Said purple-haired boy offered a nod, though his eyes kept flicking to outside the Center, like he'd rather be training…or simply anywhere other than here. For some strange reason, Ash felt that Paul and Nanu could be friends…if one ignored the fact that Nanu didn't seem to care much for anything whatsoever.

Still more people were there, including Misty and Iris, who almost looked a little out of place in the rather large group, until two trainers that Ash vaguely remembered from the Kalos Team Tournament (was it Truce and Brent? He couldn't be sure) walked up and engaged them in conversation. Ash wasn't sure how well it went, mostly because he was drawn to Professor Sycamore there, having what looked like an engaging conversation with Meyer (eyeing his son with an impressed look, since Korrina had draped her arm around him) and Professor Kukui. Ash was honestly surprised they were all there, and he thought of calling his own mother. Those thoughts were dashed moments later.

"Reena! Leelee!" Acerola shouted, running in with abandon as yet more people came into the Pokémon Center. Ash turned to face them all, noting that while the Kahunas and Champions weren't here, obviously to avoid a show of favoritism, it didn't mean that certain others didn't arrive, instead, such as Lionel and Kahili. "I didn't get a chance to congratulate you, Reena! Nice job! You'll make a very cool Ali'i ka Leilani…at least for your stay here and however long that is."

"Thank you, Acerola," Serena said kindly as she and Lillie engaged the girl in conversation. Ash just turned to speak with the other newcomers there. Kahili wasted no time in placing a hand on Ash's shoulder and leaning against him lazily, while Lionel approached a little slower.

"Nice job out there, today," the older man greeted. He seemed to be alone, which could only mean that the rest of ARC was busy handling other things. "Sorry I haven't had the chance to get here earlier and all, but we've been busy. Organizing a group effort with people like Team Skull is a pain…If it weren't for Looker and the International Police, I don't know how we'd manage."

"That's okay. Are you planning on watching the finals?" Ash asked, frowning at the rather nonchalant Kahili. Lionel gave a sharp jerk of his head.

"That's the plan, though immediately after that we'll start to get moving. Professor Kukui and myself should fill you in tomorrow, after the match," Lionel waved off. Ash had to wonder just what he meant; Professor Kukui, along with some other words spoken were truly mysterious (though not the part about Lionel filling things in). "Well, anyway, I'm looking forward to the finals. Since Jack isn't around to watch you…I'd like to, in his stead. Assuming you don't mind."

"I've got no problems with it," Ash assured him. Though he was starting to have a problem with Kahili leaning on him, especially with the way she leaned over to grab some food. Lionel smiled and looked outside. There was no snow for the moment, the sun shining down on Mount Lanakila.

"Your father would be very proud of you, Ash," he breathed out. Ash offered a smile at that, but made sure to raise his voice to address Lionel directly.

"I know, but I'm not doing this for him," the raven-haired trainer made sure to speak simply. Lionel turned, blinking, while Kahili almost looked impressed. "I'm doing this, and I'm going to win, because that's what I've promised to do. It's not for me, but so I can understand everyone else: the person and Pokémon that I'm fighting, the people I've promised, those who support me. Everyone.  _That's_  what makes me a Pokémon Master."

"Isn't he the greatest?" Kahili said cheekily, giving him a noogie on the head. Ash finally swatted her away, able to extricate himself from the woman's hold. She shrugged things away and went over to Acerola and the others as she did so. Lionel chuckled and stepped forward.

"Yes, I suppose it does. It'll be an honor to fight alongside you one more time," the dark-skinned man assured him, holding out a hand for Ash to shake. Ash took it, Pikachu running along to put his paw in the center there. "I'm sure you'll wage an excellent battle tomorrow in time for the Day of Stars."

"I'll tell you, I'm looking forward to it, too, cousin. Woo!" Kukui called out, breaking away from his little professors' convention to stride forward. "These battles so far have been awesome; really reminds me of my younger years."

"Does it?" Ash chuckled out. He had a hard time believing that Kukui was "reminded" of his younger years. Either way, he didn't say much more than all that.

"For sure! Even Burnet said watching them makes me look way younger. Akela rolled her eyes at it, but what can you do?" Kukui laughed out. He glanced to the door before shoving his hands inside of his lab coat pockets. "Honestly, I'm so thrilled by everything that it's like I've got Anticipation. I'm technically not even supposed to be here. Gotta be impartial and all. But with the big battle coming up, had to come and see everyone. Guessing we're all set?"

"As we can be," Lionel noted, his eyes flashing just a little. Ash watched his face, wondering if he'd seen Serena's father at all, despite Gladion having informed him of everything that had been discovered at the Lake of the Moone. The celebration in the Center seemed to have quieted down a moment, like they were all listening in on the conversation that was being held between everyone. "I'm aware of what will be done to repair the Moon Flute. Though, getting around to all four islands…I could take Miss Lillie to Poni, but…"

"I'm sure Kiawe can handle Gladion getting to other places here on Ula'ula, same with Clemont and Bonnie," Ash assured him, folding his arms a bit. "Meanwhile, me and Serena have something a bit faster."

"Good, 'cause at least she will need it," Kukui chuckled out. The strange comment once more drew Ash's attention. "Then after the flute's repaired, presumably you'll all head to Poni Island again. Which makes the only issue getting you four and Nebby and all that to the altar, yes?"

"That all sounds about right. We can work out logistics tonight for transportation. Now, I'm sure Lusamine knows we're coming, but we do have your plan for that," Lionel noted. Serena and Clemont were now walking forward. Bonnie was behind, playing with some of the Pokémon in the room there, including Piplup. Lillie dragged even further behind.

"I think it's pretty brilliant! And it'll be a great way to celebrate while everyone moves into place," Kukui assured the man. Lionel nodded, but the two men soon realized that the trainers gathered there were all looking at them rather curiously. Kukui chuckled nervously. "Ah, but none of you have to worry about that. Just be ready to move out tomorrow afternoon, and we'll take care of the rest with a Quick Attack. We at least want the flute repaired before those portals open."

"Right," Lionel assured them. He quickly checked his wrist for the time and then sighed out. "Well, I guess we should follow up with the Kahunas, make sure they and the other captains are ready to defend their islands. Plus, the Champions will want to assemble at the altar following the battle."

"Right you are! Good luck tomorrow, Ash! Looking forward to a Heat Wave of a battle!" With those words, Kukui waved as Lionel escorted the both of them out with a shaking head. Ash just reached up and scratched at the side of his own head. He looked to his friends as the party returned into full swing around them, but they were just as clueless regarding the words spoken by the two men. Kahili also approached once more.

"Yeah, he's been talking like that since the start of this thing," she chuckled out, brushing some hair back. "He and Miss Akela definitely have something planned for after the finals tomorrow. I'm starting to wonder if it has something to do with keeping Lusamine's eye fixed on the event here while we all scurry about, getting our jobs done."

"Hmm…" Serena hummed out, tapping her chin thoughtfully at the comment. Ash met her gaze as the two seemed to have a silent conversation, wondering what it could be about. Hau, who was listening a few feet away, didn't seem to care that much, grinning as he and Pipi munched on some malasadas. Kahili laughed out yet again.

"Guess we'll find out tomorrow! I know you'll be brilliant, Ash. I trained you, after all, so I'll be sitting in the stands to see you win, and you better not let your brilliant teacher down." Ash rolled his eyes at his mentor's near-absence of modesty. She walked a little forward, staring out of the Pokémon Center. "This is a true battle for our world. Already, it's forced us to reexamine ourselves. But I know that all of you will pull through. Of course, I'll support you in any way I'm directed to, along with Hapu, Mina and all the others. You all just need to make sure you get into the Ultra Space."

"We will!" Lillie said emphatically, clutching her fists to her chest. "Not because the Tapus chose us, though…but because it's something  _we_  have to do." Ash nodded, thinking of the battle that was likely waiting for him there. Clemont stood forward.

"You guys support us from the outside, while Hau, Team Rocket and myself will protect the others that need to do whatever on the inside," Clemont insisted. "As long as we keep everything split up, then they'll need to take all of us out before they can say they've won."

"In the meantime, we'll drag Guzma and Lusamine out if we have to!" Ash assured her, lifting a fist up to Kahili, mostly as a means of giving her some assurance. She cracked a smile and nodded, though Ash had to wonder if she had some trepidation regarding the battle. Or maybe her body was simply shaking with excitement.

If Ash was honest with himself, he was almost trembling with anticipation over the next two days, as well. Usually, he was thrown into battle after battle, never thinking or having the time to think. Now, though, they had planned, and that moment they were planning for had nearly arrived. It forced him to have the need to bolster his own confidence and resolve, including what he'd said he would do when it came to Guzma. Serena and Clemont both reached up, putting hands on his shoulders.

"No matter what it is, we'll finish this together!" Clemont assured him, giving him that courage he felt he needed.

"Just like always," Serena added on with a wink, giving him determination. Everyone seemed to hear that reassurance, because they all cheered out, no one louder than both Hau and Bonnie. Ash was even sure that Team Rocket was part of that group over by the food table, still in their concession-selling outfits. Ash walked forward.

"Right! One more time, guys!" he said, throwing his fist into the air. They all emulated him, even Kahili, who had certainly come to know the expression of victory. Despite the boy not being there, Ash had to wonder if Gladion was sharing in that solidarity. Somehow, there was no doubt he did…or would, especially after tomorrow. "Let's all work together and stop the Ultra Beasts from destroying our world!"

"Yeah!" they cheered, except for the most reticent of people (mainly Paul, who scoffed and turned away). Lillie was the loudest, looking steely and determined for just who she'd have to face. In fact, she was filled with such determination that she turned to face Ash properly.

"Before we do, I just have one request," Lillie spoke out calmly. Ash stared right back at her, waiting for her to elaborate. She breathed in and then smiled, before bowing low, her ponytail bouncing on her head. "I want you to win!"

"Lillie…" Serena said, almost like she was surprised. Lillie didn't raise her head up as she continued on.

"I know he's my brother, and despite what he did, leaving me behind, turning me in…I  _do_  still love him," Lillie spoke, clearly and concisely despite the position of her head. "But that's why, tomorrow, I want you to beat him! I want to see you win! Because…because nothing would make me happier! I know that, if you can, it'll mean that he can finally turn away from that kind of person, and become the brother that I love again.

"Not only that, though. I just want you to win because you've given me so much, and I've given nothing in return. So, if I can just cheer for you with all of my heart…would you consider that enough? Could…could you do that for me?"

Ash watched as she raised her head, tears in her eyes as she smiled at him with her earnest request. He looked quickly to both Serena and Clemont, the both of them smiling at the blonde. Then, Ash looked at Pikachu and they grinned, stepping forward to take Lillie into a hug. She melted into it, gripping on to his vest like it was the safest thing in the world. And like a father, reassuring there was nothing under the bed, he whispered the words she needed and wanted to hear. Words that he meant: "I'll win. I promise."

* * *

Ash knew he wouldn't be getting any sleep that night, that much was obvious. The thought of the finals of the Alola League  _and_  the Day of Stars that would occur almost immediately after, was too much for him to bear. Even Serena sleeping next to him (like an angel, he found his mind strangely commenting) wasn't enough to make it possible to sleep. While everyone else was sleeping perfectly fine, he simply could not. So, before the sunrise could even possibly peek over the horizon of the mountain, Ash awoke fully, stretching his limbs alongside Pikachu.

"Wanna go for a little morning run before the big match?" Ash asked of his partner quietly, grinning down at him. The two of them hadn't partied as much as his friends (some of whom seemed to have passed out in the Pokémon Center in the first place), which meant they felt far more energized than those who would merely be watching. Pikachu pumped his fist, ready to partake in their jogging, when Serena awoke and rolled over. Her shirt rode up just a little bit, revealing her stomach as she blinked blurrily at him.

"You're up early," she stated quietly in the dark room. Before Ash could make a move to cover her with a blanket, she sat up, rubbing at her eyes. "I get it, though. Believe it or not, I'm pretty nervous, too…even if I know you're going to win."

"How about we all go for a run, then? The three of us," Ash said, holding his hand out to her. She contemplated it for a moment and then seemed to decide that it really was the best course of action. She got up, and Ash turned away to afford her the privacy to change, his face blushing just a little when her elbow brushed against his back accidentally. It made him clear his throat to clear his mind. Seconds later, she was ready, and they'd written a note for their friends, just in case.

The brisk, morning Lanakila air pierced their lungs once they'd stepped outside, filling them with invigorating energy and helping thoughts to simply filter through their minds. Serena seemed to be thinking about something, likely the impending showdown they were going to be having with Lusamine. He was pretty sure they all had it on their minds: just who they were going to have to confront in the Ultra Space…He was still unsure of how they were actually going to stop them and seal off the Ultra Space from wreaking havoc in their world, but they always found a way. He knew that better than anyone.

Otherwise, his mind turned to the finals that were impending before him. He was keeping his promise to meet Gladion at the League, in the finals. Now, he just needed to keep his new promise to Lillie and win. He was certain that was what the others were wishing from him as well. In fact, he was well aware of it. Gary had passed it off nonchalantly, while Alain was stoic about it, saying that he knew Ash would give a great battle, and Sawyer and Seamus were both bristling with excitement. None of them said it aloud, but it was obvious they all wanted him to win. The same was with Dawn and May who simply kept repeating Dawn's catchphrase of "no need to worry" over and over to the point that Misty got…violent. Iris had then laughed, calling her a kid, while Cilan remarked on their "savory blend".

"I'm almost certain it's just because they're tense over the battle," Clemont had commented, and Ash didn't think there was any actual need to contradict him. Mostly because he was right. The other part was that he didn't want to talk, saving his mind for that upcoming battle that everyone was hoping for him to obtain victory in. The point that gave him solace, however, was that he knew none of them  _absolutely expected_  him to win. Nor did he. It wasn't about winning, but he sure was going to try. Beyond that, he was grateful for Brock's silent support, not a word needed after everything the two of them had been through together. He simply promised to stand by Ash, no matter the result, and the two clasped hands in a brotherly hug.

That emboldened Ash on his run, even with the glimpse of the stars, so close to being knitted together and creating singular bright points in the sky, instead of a canopy. The Day was almost here, but he let his mind fill with more pleasant thoughts, like those of the girl running beside him, Pikachu at their heels and keeping up. He really felt he might not have made it through Alola without her, and not because she was the only thing keeping him going (because she wasn't, of course), but because she was the most present reminder of what he always loved having around: family. How Bonnie was the little sister to her, Clemont was the good friend of the group that was like his brother. And Lillie.

Just from seeing Serena interact with Lillie, he knew that one day she'd be a brilliant mother; on par or better with his own (which also seemed to remind himself of how he'd called her last night, and she'd wished him the best of luck, planning to record the entire match). And, of course, he hoped that he'd be right there with Serena when it came to being parents. Lillie, of course, was close in age to them, but had acted so like a child from being closed off to the world, that Ash looked after her like she was his own. It encouraged his relationship with Serena even more, despite their rough patches through the region.

Thinking on that also reminded him of those moments where he yearned for  _more_ , such as in the cabin moments ago. He never thought of himself that way, but things had been growing in that way for some time, and he knew it was natural, yet all so strange. Really, it just confirmed a singular thing for him as he slowed and turned to face her. Before she ran off, he'd grabbed her and kissed her without a moment's notice or hesitation. She looked surprised.

"I love you, Serena," he said. She blinked, cupping his face and leaning in, her chest pressing up against his. No one was around for that moment, and they both just enjoyed the rush of feeling, while Pikachu looked away, extremely embarrassed from the way they were acting. Eventually, though, they separated and Ash placed a hand on her back, running it up. She seemed to shiver for a moment, but he figured it was from the cold. "I'm gonna tell you that every day we're together…well, physically together. 'Cause it's kinda hard to do if I'm in a forest and you're in a city and-"

"Ash, point," Serena told him kindly, but sternly. He stopped his hand moving upward, nestling on the small of her back. She moved a little closer.

"Well, we split up for a long time and I…really missed you," he admitted with a little smile. "And…well…I don't want us to ever walk away without saying it. Because I want to be with you, forever, and have that future we've worked so hard to build. I want that future with  _you_  and everything else that comes with it, like a family. Even if, you know, we have to do all that other stuff first to get there."

"Ash, me too," she said softly. She leaned forward, placing her head on his shoulder, turning and kissing him on the neck. He couldn't deny  _that_  shiver. It made him feel assured of the future, even if they could possibly face a world that had no tomorrow. "For now, though, just remember that we're all with you."

"Of course!" Ash said positively, grinning at her as they decided once more to resume their run. It was a much shorter trip for the way back to the cabin, as the sun was now beginning to rise, spilling over the mountaintops and spelling the opening of the finals to the Alola League. He and Pikachu found themselves getting more excited; not even the sight of Gladion walking to the stadium so early could dampen him. Serena might have helped with that.

"Don't worry, Ash. I know the two of you can reach each other again," she assured him. "You connected over the loss of family and shared experiences once before. That's why I know you can reach him, understand his pain and repair your friendship. You might be different, but that's what makes you work, and you've both learned from one another. So, you'll reach each other, no problem." She then blushed before adding, "You are my Pokémon Master, after all."

Ash had to laugh at that, realizing she was absolutely right. Thinking on lost family members, as they were nearing the village, the two quickly ran into another familiar face, who looked ready to depart from the summit. He caught notice of them and waved at them calmly. Ash picked up the pace, calling out loudly, "Leaving already?"

"Yes," came Y's response to Ash's question. Serena still looked nervous around him, but the way that Y looked at her with such proud eyes, it eased Ash's own heart. "The Day of Stars, and the tipping point, is tomorrow. I want to get to the Lake of the Moone, make sure nothing's happened before Clemont and Bonnie arrive. You understand?"

"Of course," Serena spoke calmly and evenly. She truly acted the part of royalty that Ash knew she was. "We want to have the best advantage, of course. Will you…will you come for the awards ceremony?"

"I'll definitely try, but no promises. If I don't make it, for whatever reason, know I'll be watching," he answered. His body turned to face her for a moment, a grin on his face. "You amazed me, Serena. I thought seeing you on the television was spectacular, but in person…you're truly a beautiful woman, just like your mother. And…I'm very proud of you, if you'll let me be."

"S-sure," Serena said, and Ash could hear her holding back her tears of happiness. Y seemed to hesitate a moment, but then he threw caution to the winds and grabbed both of the teenagers in for a hug. "D-dad?"

"I'm sorry for being such a deadbeat father all these years," he whispered, close enough that Ash could hear him. "That you have become so beautiful, and what the two of you have is so beautiful, astounds me. I'm…I'm very grateful to have such a wonderful daughter. So, please, come back safe, and take care of each other."

"We always do," Ash assured him. That was the confirmation he needed to pull away. Not another word was exchanged as Y nodded at them, the pride replaced with determination for the battle ahead. Those silent vows exchanged, Y left, running along towards the lift down from Mount Lanakila.

At long last, Ash's thoughts turned fully towards the finals, starting to consume his very mind, and blocking out all else. The couple returned to their cabin, everybody up and ready for the day. His friends, no…his family said nothing except for a quiet "good luck" following breakfast, as Ash breathed in, their group heading for the stadium. It was quickly growing populated despite the earliness before the match, and at the entrance, they separated, well-wishes on their tongues.

"Ready, Pikachu? This is a battle we've been waiting for," Ash told him. Pikachu nodded.

"Pikapi, pi chu!" Pikachu answered, flexing his fist as they both walked further inside, heading for the waiting room that was theirs and theirs alone. The sound of the growing noise of the crowd filled the room as Ash entered that space and sat down, readying himself for the battle ahead. Then, for a second, he stood and called his entire team out, while Greninja popped out on his own, despite not being used for the day's battle.

"This is it, guys. The finals!" Ash assured them all. They nodded back at him. "Gladion won't hold back, and he's going to try every tactic to take us down. So…we need to push forward, no matter what, and win! No giving up until the very end!"

"Kooroo!" Decidueye cried, as Toucannon perched on his head comfortably with her own cry. Passimian and Kommo-o nodded, while Lycanroc howled. They were all ready for the battle ahead. Ash even looked to Greninja and nodded.

"And…everyone," he wanted to make sure he said to all of them. "No matter what, I love you all. This is about even more than winning for us! We're striving to understand the other team in every way. If we can do that, nothing else matters. We're gonna pull away and understand Gladion better than any other trainer before! And he'll understand us! So, let's give it our all!"

"Pika pikachuuuu!" Pikachu called in agreement, his cheeks sparking a bit in his enthusiasm. There was a sudden chiming, and Ash knew it was time. Giving another quick look, he put his hand in while the others did the same (though some used wings or paws), raising them into the air in the best fists they could. Then, he returned them all and walked forward, out of the waiting room and towards the cheering crowd, already sitting on the edge of a knife.

"Today is the day! Bright, sunny and clear, like the Legendary Pokémon of Alola are smiling down upon this very match!" Kalas cried out, sounding more excited than ever. Ash stepped forward, walking down the hallway as he approached the moment they would meet on the battlefield. "Because today is the day! Today are the finals of the Alola League!"

"Wooooooooo!" the crowd roared with absolute excitement. Ash finally reached the edge of the hallway, and began stepping out into the light. The cheers and screams hit him full force as he looked up to the stands once he'd emerged. In the crowd, immediately opposite himself, he could see Serena and the others, including Kahili, as well. Some in the crowd were holding up banners with Ash and Gladion's names, waving them around excitedly. That made Ash turn his gaze downward, to the boy he was opposing, a stoic look on the blond's face.

"Here they are! Our amazing competitors that have battled this far into the Alola League: it's Ash! And it's Gladion!" Kalas called out. The screaming and waving increased, vibrating the entire stadium as fireworks went off overhead. "Which one will take home the win? Who will walk away as the first ever Alola League Champion? ! I couldn't say, but it'll be amazing!"

"Yeah, it will," Ash breathed to himself, finally coming to a stop. He looked across, facing Gladion as the blond nodded at him. He nodded back. They were ready to settle things, determined to move forward. It wasn't about words for them, but about the battle. The ground shuddered, and their first field began to move upwards, sliding into place.

"And here it is! The first field of the final battle will be…the desert wasteland!" Kalas called out. Ash surveyed the field as he reached for his pokeball to call his first Pokémon. It was a rock-strewn wasteland for sure, with patches of sand here and there, dusting up slightly in the air that circulated the stadium. Perfect for a showdown. The referee stepped forward.

"This is a final battle between Ash and Gladion!" he called to the quieting crowd, though Ash knew it wouldn't last long. "As such, it will be a six-on-six battle between the trainers, with substitutions allowed! The battle will only be over when all six of one side's Pokémon are defeated. Further, after one trainer has lost three Pokémon, there will be a battlefield change! Trainers, at your ready."

The referee stepped back and the crowd seemed to hush, filled with burgeoning excitement all throughout the stadium. One more look was shared between the combatants, and they tossed their pokeballs forward at the same time. "This is it, Gladion. As promised. Lycanroc, I choose you!"

"Yeah. I've been looking forward to this. Let's settle it. Dhelmise, come out!" Ash blinked a little at the unfamiliar name. Lycanroc hit the field on all fours, howling loudly with energy as her portrait appeared on the screen. Likewise, Gladion's unfamiliar Pokémon emerged, putting Ash's body immediately on the defensive from its presence alone. It looked like a seaweed covered anchor, almost ghostly in nature. In fact, Ash was almost certain that Rotom was saying exactly that from up above in the stands: a Grass and Ghost type. Gladion was already setting up for a challenge

Then the referee lowered his hand.

"Lycanroc, Accelerock!" Ash called, punching forward. Lycanroc's body glowed and she took off, feet pounding almost soundlessly against the rock as she ran, aiming straight for Dhelmise. It was definitely an odd Pokémon, and Ash knew he'd have to be careful, unsure of how the creature would move. In little time, Lycanroc had reached the foe before them and slammed into it. The floating Dhelmise was pushed back. "Now, use Crunch!"

"Phantom Force!" Gladion ordered, bringing a hand up to his face and covering one side. Lycanroc's jaws gleamed white, and she bit forward, only for the Sea Creeper Pokémon to disappear. Unlike the day before against Glaceon, Lycanroc remained calm, even without Ash's command. She raised her snout, sniffing at the air, trying to sense the opponent.

"Croo!" Lycanroc howled shortly and Ash grinned. Dhelmise suddenly appeared behind Lycanroc and slashed outward with the large blade that formed its anchor. It slammed into Lycanroc, but she turned around and got her bearings in midair.

"Now, go and use Crunch!" Lycanroc growled, bounding forward and biting into the blade of the anchor.

"Del…" Dhelmise echoed out, its compass-shaped eye twitching a bit as it suffered from the swift attack. Gladion stepped forward.

"Spin around and shake it off," he called, throwing his hand down low. Dhelmise began to spin rapidly, whipping up some of the sand around it. Lycanroc whimpered in the process, until Dhelmise finally managed to throw her off and send her flying into a patch of sand. Ash clenched his fist, offering a small grin.

"No worries! Kick up that sand towards Dhelmise!" Ash ordered swiftly. Lycanroc turned around and kicked her hindlegs out fiercely. The dust was stirred up and billowed out towards the Ghost type. Gladion was yelling for a dodge. Putting weight behind its body, Dhelmise began to spin rapidly, whirring away from the source of the dust.

"Use Power Whip!" Gladion called, now cracking his knuckles swiftly. Dhelmise didn't stop spinning, but its anchor seemed to glow green and become remarkably flexible in the process. It continued shining powerfully as it hurtled right for Lycanroc and whipped out rapidly. Ash threw his fist up.

"Dodge it with Accelerock!" Ash called. Lycanroc whipped around to face Dhelmise as it hurtled at her. Her body blazed with gray light again, and she blasted forward, stirring up a little more of the dust. The flexible anchor slammed the green glow forward, knocking into the stone surface that Lycanroc was now upon. She, however, had managed to avoid it by dodging to the side quickly and then leaping forward and slamming into the Pokémon from the side. Its anchor returned to normal quite swiftly. "Now, use Stone Edge!"

"Laroooo!" Lycanroc howled loudly, her howl causing stones to jut up all over the place as they raced towards Dhelmise. Gladion didn't seem to be worried, just as Ash figured. It was pretty much the way he operated…at least until things went south. Ash had to wonder if that part had changed.

"Anchor Shot! Hit the rocks," he commanded calmly, his eyes narrowed towards the battlefield. Dhelmise recovered before the rocks could hit it and there was a bright, almost sea-colored glow near its shank that fired outward like a ghostly, steel chain. That chain embedded itself in the rocks, piercing them with the anchor. "Whip it around now!"

"Mise…mise…" Dhelmise echoed out, almost similar to the way Null had sounded before its facemask was removed. Like always, Dhelmise's whole body began to spin with the effort and the stones were ripped from the ground. It began to spin around, the connected chain carrying the stones with it as it did so, swinging rapidly. It was in such tight rotations that, within seconds, one of the stones had slammed against Lycanroc, tossing her to the side and back on to the sands. She recovered swiftly, however, and Ash quickly sparked with an idea.

"Lycanroc, use Thunder Fang on the chain!" Lycanroc growled loudly, her jaw and fangs now sparking with electricity. Pikachu was cheering her on, his own cheeks sparking to show his support. Gladion still watched calmly. Lycanroc pounced, leaping over the next rock that came hurtling towards her and she snapped to the side. Her fangs dug into the chain, exploding with lightning. The voltage traveled upwards and downwards, blasting apart the rocks on the end of the chained anchor, while also reaching all the way into Dhelmise's core, causing it to convulse wildly while each stone exploded along the chain.

"Disappear with Phantom Force!" Gladion called, the small veneer of calm shattering. Ash wanted to chuckle; he was still the same Gladion, though he didn't sound so upset about the battle shifting. He was just more passionate now. Dhelmise's chain retracted back into its body, Lycanroc still attached. Before she could slam against the opposing Pokémon, she let go, and just in time. Dhelmise disappeared, vanishing into the air once more.

"Don't bother sensing it! Keep moving and stir up the sand!" Ash called out. Pikachu hopped up and down next to him while Lycanroc took off. She ran across the field, changing direction every so often while Ash scanned things, waiting for the enemy to make its move. Sand and dust stirred up, whirling around as they waited, and then Ash saw it. Some of the sand didn't keep blowing onward. "Now, dodge to the right!"

"Lycrrr!" Lycanroc called. She did as asked, just as Dhelmise appeared and swung downward. The timely command allowed Lycanroc to avoid the blow entirely, though Gladion wasn't planning on letting the speedy wolf do whatever it wanted.

"Anchor Shot, let's go!" he called. Dhelmise turned with rapidity and fired off the same ghostly chain, this time right at Lycanroc, who was still finding a small amount of balance from her earlier dodge. The chain slammed into her side, looking far more powerful than Ash had expected. Lycanroc was tossed across the field, rolling slightly before she got back on to all fours once again, shaking her head, but her tongue wagging out a little.

"That was pretty strong…just one hit…" Ash commented. He looked over to Gladion, who was staring right back at him, actually grinning in his direction. Dhelmise was an odd one: ghostly power with an obvious Steel type move that was buffed up beyond belief. Another one of those, or something like Power Whip, and there would be no way for Lycanroc to keep standing. "Right! Make a Stone Edge shield!"

"Dhelmise, Power Whip!" It was just as Ash thought. Lycanroc howled, slamming her paws on the ground and causing the stones to erupt rapidly. They formed a bulwark between her and Dhelmise, though the Sea Creeper Pokémon wasn't stopping, whirling forward like a deadly blade, glowing green and undulating. Lycanroc backed up as the Power Whip sliced through the stones, obliterating them like they weren't even there.

"Dodge it!" Ash called out. Lycanroc hopped to the side, barely avoiding the slamming Dhelmise, but the Pokémon wasn't finished there. Gladion called for his Pokémon to keep it up. Dhelmise did just that, striking back and forth with its writhing green blade, coming closer to Lycanroc every time. It certainly wasn't working very well for Ash to have Lycanroc keep dodging. "Time for another strategy. Lycanroc, return!"

Ash raised his pokeball to call her back, but the red light hit Lycanroc, and did nothing. She didn't return at all. His eyes widened…he hadn't thought that Anchor Shot had  _that_  kind of secondary effect. In the brief second between trying to return Lycanroc, the Power Whip slammed down on her, knocking her into the ground. "Finish it with Giga Drain!"

"Dhelmiiii!" Dhelmise finally shrieked, as if finally in the throes of victory. Lycanroc couldn't recover, as Dhelmise's seaweed glowed a bright green and shot out like tendrils, wrapping around Lycanroc and sucking her dry. She called out for a second, but it was only that before it was over with a green burst of energy puffing into the air, and Dhelmise floated backwards, glowing a healing blue color. Ash frowned.

"Lycanroc is unable to battle! Dhelmise is the winner!"

"And Gladion takes the first victory of this final match! Is this a fortune for how the battle will go? Or will Ash be able to turn it all around?" Kalas called to the cheering crowd. Ash almost had to laugh, even as he called his bravely defeated Pokémon back. He looked up, towards Gladion and his floating Pokémon.

"Sorry about that. Not our best match, I guess," Ash called out; he could even feel Lycanroc's disappointment inside her pokeball. He reached back to grab for his next Pokémon. "But don't worry. Me and my team will push you to the end. That's what you want, right, Gladion? That's all you ever wanted to get from battling and growing stronger. So you wouldn't be hurt."

"Mm," Gladion vocalized, but neither confirmed or denied the statement. Ash felt he didn't need to. He knew. He really had known it back when they'd battled at Brooklet Hill, but never realized how far it would take the blond before him, or the depths to which he'd sink. Now, however, he did, so he was determined to show him that strength only to defend from pain never came from just sheer tactics or growing stronger on your own.

It was about accepting it.

"Toucannon, I choose you!" Ash cried, sending his next pokeball into the air.

"Toucaaaaah!" Toucannon screeched loudly upon her emergence to the battlefield. The crowd cheered while her picture appeared on the screen. Dhelmise just glared at her with its compass eye, sizing her up, and Ash grinned. He was reaching his hand out.

"Toucannon, Feather Dance!" Toucannon flew forward, cutting through the air before her wings snapped outward. Feathers shot out, acting almost like razors, despite being undamaging. They flitted across Dhelmise's figure, causing it to glow blue.

"Power Whip!" Gladion roared out, bringing his hand out as his knuckles cracked. Dhelmise swung forward once more, the anchor glowing green as it squirmed outward, aiming for Toucannon.

"Flame Charge!" Ash roared. Lycanroc had given him a perfect understanding of how Dhelmise worked, and despite some of the healed damage from before, Ash knew he would win this particular matchup. Besides, Gladion was too stubborn to switch out Pokémon; yet another thing he'd proven during their battle at Brooklet Hill, but Ash had been too blind to see. Toucannon blasted off, jettisoning with flames around her entire body. Dhelmise swung upwards, but Toucannon dodged, ramming right into the Pokémon and flapping off to the sky.

"Use Phantom Force to catch up with it!" Gladion yelled out. Dhelmise vanished into thin air, and Ash had to wonder what move would  _truly_ be used next, given how non-effective Phantom Force would be. Ash's eyes widened a little, and he grinned.

"Toucannon, low to the ground and use Hyper Voice!" Ash cried out, throwing his hand outwards. Dhelmise was still nowhere to be seen, but it didn't stop Toucannon from acting. She flipped around in midair and shot downwards. Her beak snapped open.

"Cannaaaaaaah!" The red waves blasted out, powerfully quivering the small remains of rock on the battlefield. Most importantly, it sent the sand billowing up and swirling around powerfully like a tornado. Not quite a Sand Attack or Sandstorm, but for what Ash wanted, he knew it could get the job done. Sure enough, within seconds, Dhelmise's form had become quite visibly apparent from the sand now clinging to its seaweed and the rest of its ghostly form.

"Now, nail it with Flame Charge!" Ash called. Toucannon shot off through the sand, bursting with flames that melted the sand away until she slammed into Dhelmise, driving it away from the sand cloud and making it visible once more with a cry. She quickly detached herself from it and flew into the air again.

"Giga Drain!" Gladion roared outward. The seaweed rustled with a life of its own and, like tendrils, went after Toucannon. She still had her Flame Charge active as it got close with its unearthly green glow. Her head turned a little, looking towards Ash, and he nodded. She put an extra burst of speed on, the flames rising into an even higher conflagration. The Giga Drain made contact with the flames, but was already burned away the second it would have touched. "Keep it close with Anchor Shot!"

"Keep on the move and dodge it!" Ash called. Toucannon did just that. The ghostly colored anchor shot outward from Dhelmise's body, aiming right for Toucannon. She rolled through the air, dodging the attack as she did so, and snapped her wings outward, flying right up to get above the anchor's descending level. "Another Flame Charge, let's go!"

"Meet it with Power Whip!" Gladion commanded. Toucannon flapped through the air and then hurtled straight for Dhelmise, body blazing with even greater flames. She was like a shot now, traveling at speeds that Ash had never quite seen from her before. The chain retracted swiftly, and Dhelmise's anchor glowed green, swinging upward as Toucannon finished her approach. This time, the attack managed to hit and make contact with Toucannon's body, but she didn't stop, driving into Dhelmise and flinging it off through the air. "Hide with Phantom Force and then use Power Whip!"

"Del," Dhelmise grunted, vanishing into the air like the ghost it was. However, Gladion had made a miscalculation, one he quickly realized: Dhelmise was still visible from the sand yet clinging to it.

"Charge up a Beak Blast!" Ash called out, grinning as he threw a fist into the air. Gladion attempted to cry out for Dhelmise to stop, but events were moving too quickly. Toucannon's beak glowed a bright red, blistering with heat as she located her opponent and angled herself straight for that foe. Dhelmise reappeared, swinging its anchor upwards. The green whip made contact with the beak, which glowed to its crimson zenith for a moment and then exploded outwards. Toucannon's wings snapped wide and Dhelmise blew back from the major attack, slamming into the sand, body smoking completely from all the flaming attacks it had taken. There was another, powerful burst of flame, and Dhelmise remained flat and still.

"Dhelmise is unable to battle! Toucannon is the winner!" the referee shouted out. Ash nodded, praising Toucannon inside his head for such a well-fought battle, all while turning his mind to whatever Pokémon was next. Toucannon had taken a little bit of damage, but not enough to put a dent in her, so he waited to see what Gladion would call as his second Pokémon, the blond returning his first.

"Okay, then. Araquanid, you're up!" the blond called, throwing his next pokeball forward as the Water Bubble Pokémon appeared, its large legs skittering back and forth as the bubble on its head jiggled, encasing it carefully and calmly. It glared at Toucannon. Ash breathed in, looking at Pikachu and nodding. "Aqua Ring, now!"

"Let's disturb that bubble, Toucannon! Hyper Voice!" The Pokémon both acted simultaneously. Toucannon's large beak opened wide and fired off a rather loud soundwave, pulsing red as it flew towards Araquanid, all while said Pokémon was surrounded by numerous rings of water that shined around its figure. The soundwaves battered at Araquanid, but the bubble just rippled and continued to keep it safe and calm. Gladion had reverted back to his calm state, as well.

"Lunge!" came the command. Araquanid's bubble and body glowed green, and it spun quickly, almost turning into a green orb of its own volition. That same orb shot into the air, flying through the air for Toucannon, like it was connected to her by a thin string.

"Dodge it and use Flame Charge on the bubble!" Toucannon had no problem dodging the attack. She was like a quick blur, and despite Araquanid's fast speed, she still skirted by it. Araquanid spun out in midair, back into its normal state as Toucannon erupted with flames. She shot off and ducked under the Water Bubble Pokémon before rising upwards quickly, colliding with the large bubble around Araquanid's head. Nothing happened, causing Ash to groan a bit as Toucannon rebounded from the bubble.

"Frost Breath!" Gladion's command came. Toucannon was too close in range, right in the moment that a portion of the bubble parted, just enough for Araquanid's mouth to open and fire off a piercing, and wide-ranged, beam of ice that engulfed all of Toucannon. She still seemed okay, but Gladion was pressing on. "Use Scald!"

"Dodge it, and use Feather Dance for cover!" Ash called, narrowing his eyes a bit. Toucannon flapped her large wings, pushing away from Araquanid while sending out the multitude of feathers that obscured her from the opponent. The bubble closed once more and then fired off steaming water, shimmering in the bleak light of the wasteland. The water hit upon the feathers, dousing them, but not going much further than that. "Get ready with a Beak Blast!"

"Use Lunge, right now!" Gladion called. Now Ash was really wondering just what the boy was up to. Had he found some way around Toucannon's Beak Blast? If that were the case, Ash knew he'd have to be careful. He observed both Pokémon as Toucannon's beak glowed red hot and Araquanid charged forward in its spinning form. He waited, and finally, the attack made contact with the Beak Blast.

"Toucah!" Toucannon cried as the attack landed and exploded outward. She, too, was forced backwards, slightly dazed from Araquanid's simultaneous strike, but otherwise relatively fine. Araquanid, however, was glowing blue and looking as hale and hearty as ever. There wasn't even a burn!

"Araquanid's ability is Water Bubble, Ash," Gladion said to him, a smirk playing on his lips. For a moment, Ash was brought back to that Brooklet Hill battle, when he had instructed him upon Mareanie's ability. It felt right. Every battle they were having was a step closer to being comrades again. "That means it can't be burned, so I can attack Beak Blast with impunity. Again and again until Toucannon falls."

"Oh…" Ash noted, and he started to chuckle. "Guess that  _would_  make things difficult." Ash nodded, soaking in Gladion's words as both Araquanid and Toucannon got themselves ready for another round. Only Ash wasn't. He knew they couldn't keep on battling like this and expect to win, already being behind, by all rights. So, without any hesitation, he pulled his pokeball out, and pulled a move that he, Gladion, and even his friends had likely not expected.

"Toucannon, return! And Kommo-o, I choose you!" The final battle of the Alola League was only just getting started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: And so the finals have begun! Naturally, this major full battle will continue on into the next chapter. I think it's ultimately a good one, though it may seem slow moving now simply based on how much of a tactician Gladion is. Bit more complicated than Ash and Hau's "let's run at each other and see what happens". Though, yes, I did change his team from the games to showcase some other Pokémon, but I hope you enjoy, anyway. Of course, it wasn't all that. The Day of Stars is almost here, after all, and our heroes have everything on the line! Other than that, though, who knows how this final battle will go, but I hope it only grows more exciting.
> 
> The League will reach its conclusion soon, so please stick around! Until that next chapter, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	22. A Mending

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, the battle against Gladion continues! I hope it's a very exciting battle. Of course, to write a part towards the ending I most definitely used Type: Wild. If you know it well enough, you'll know exactly where it fits in when you see it. That said, time for Chapter 22.

Chapter 22

A Mending

"Whaaaat? !" Bonnie cried, almost at the same time as Kalas' voice did. Serena flicked her eyes over to the younger girl, briefly sharing a look with Clemont. "Why did Ash switch? Toucannon is a Flying type, right? Wouldn't she have the advantage?"

"Plus, there's the fact that Araquanid knows an attack like Frost Breath, which Kommo-o is weak to…" Lillie said with a worried tinge in her voice. Serena wasn't sure what to say to either of them as Kommo-o appeared from Ash's pokeball. It wasn't like his team would be a surprise to Gladion, all things considered, so there was no harm in switching it up. It just wasn't like Ash to do so, and she had to wonder. Clemont inclined his head, gripping at his knee.

"I'm sure that Ash has his reasons," the inventor stated. "He can't go into this lightly, of course. Not against a trainer like Gladion."

"I wouldn't worry," Kahili said, crossing her legs comfortably. Her arms were folded against her rather obvious chest while Serena looked at her. Past her was Maka, surprisingly quiet as she sketched every inch of the battle that she could, even with it in motion; she'd been awfully quiet, in general, ever since learning about the upcoming battle, though her eyes also lit up with a spark and willingness to fight. It reminded Serena of her behavior during the incident in Heahea, giving the honey blonde full faith in her rival. Meanwhile, down below, the two Pokémon were clearly itching with anticipation, waiting for their trainers to start off once more. The scritching sound of Araquanid along the rock was quite grating. "Ash knows what he's doing. Always has when it comes to a battle. He just needed the right meaning behind those battles…I get the feeling he has more meaning than ever when it comes to  _this_  battle."

"Yes," Serena agreed softly, turning back to watch. All around her, people were on the edge of their seats. Ash and Gladion's feet shifted, and then the blond made the first move in the battle.

"Araquanid, Frost Breath!" he cried, pointing forward. Araquanid made that same scratching noise and it scuttled forward a little, the bubble parting as its mouth did the same, just a fraction. Then the icy breath came spraying out. Unlike the last time it had used the attack, this time it was a little more concentrated, aiming for Kommo-o in a jet.

"Kommo-o, start off with Clanging Scales!" Ash called, bringing his fist up. The scales on the dragon's body quivered, sending their telltale tones all across the arena, and then they fired outwards like a storm of sound. The Frost Breath collided with them, and though the scales managed to stop the deadly attack from impacting with the dragon, it also put a complete hold to Kommo-o's assault on its opponent, the scales freezing and dropping on to the rock. "Now, X-Scissor!"

"Lunge!" Gladion roared. Kommo-o crossed his fists and ran forward, bright pink and purple light streaking from him as he did so. Araquanid was spinning into the familiar green orb as it shot at Kommo-o. Unlike before, its green legs were still visible, though, and both of the combatants slashed at each other. The two collided, sending the sand on the arena rippling. Ash went right into action.

"Use Sky Uppercut! Then nail it with a Poison Jab!" Ash called, punching upwards right in tandem with his Pokémon. Kommo-o's fist glowed a bright white and managed to get underneath Araquanid's belly, avoiding the bubble, and knocking it straight up into the air as its legs flailed around uselessly. Then Kommo-o's fists shined with a purple color and he pummeled forward, hitting every inch of the Water Bubble Pokémon that he could. The attacks that landed on the Bug type's body seemed to cause Araquanid pain, while the ones on the bubble almost always inexorably snapped back.

"Scald, let's go!" Gladion called out, his pointing finger curling back into a fist. Araquanid, now descending, instantly acted, sending a spraying foam of water that steamed as it soaked Kommo-o. He hunkered down from the assault on his body, but aimed one last Poison Jab at the bubble. It bounced off, as always, but this time managed to bounce the two Pokémon away from one another, giving themselves distance. "Lunge to get close, and then Frost Breath!"

"Get ready with Sky Uppercut!" Ash called. Serena could tell that Ash was watching and waiting, not letting Gladion control the battle for him. It made her smile on the inside, despite her face being as fierce as ever; for someone who usually acted on impulse, Ash was taking stock of the battle quite well. Araquanid spun rapidly the second its legs touched down on the ground, shooting forward with its green, spherical glow. It slammed into Kommo-o, who Ash hadn't given the command to strike quite yet. Serena shifted, seeing the grin on Kommo-o's face, even as the bubble parted and began blasting out the cold breath that beat into his chest. "Now, right in the gap!"

"Kommmo!" the great dragon cried. His fist came screaming upwards, right through the frigid breath that was affecting him. He was shuddering, Serena could tell, and Bonnie gave a cry. Nevertheless, he persisted, his glowing fist traveling right through the breath and in between the bubble to slam Araquanid on the bottom of its head, bringing it straight into the air.

"Keep it in the air with the other arm!" Ash commanded. Kommo-o's arm pulled back, looking completely frozen over from the Frost Breath, as his other arm sailed upwards. The assault from the Frost Breath had ended, providing the perfect opportunity to strike Araquanid's main body right into the air again with his other fist. Down below, Serena saw Ash twitch. He had an idea about how to go on. Her own eyes sought the battle down below and she noticed it, too. The bubble around Araquanid's head was starting to freeze over. "Now, hit the bubble with your frozen arm!"

"Use Scald, now!" Gladion ordered. Araquanid fired the pulsing water right away from its position, hoping to hit Kommo-o. However, he was faster, slamming his tail on the ground and leaping up to bring the frozen arm crashing down from above. The bubble strained, frosting up just a bit, but not nearly enough for whatever Ash wanted to have happen. It did put a halt to the Scald, however. In either case, Ash seemed to be looking around, and he eventually grinned.

"Quick, Kommo-o, Clanging Scales!" Ash's hand flew out as Kommo-o jumped back, closer to his side of the field. His scales quivered, sending out the enormous soundwaves that were generated from them. Kahili gave a slight "ah…", indicating that something was happening. Serena didn't notice until Clemont pointed forward.

"The frozen scales!" he cried. Sure enough, the ones on Kommo-o weren't the only ones moving from the soundwaves. As those scales from his body fired, the soundwaves they emitted seemed to be tangible enough that they picked up the frozen scales from the ground with them and flew forward, battering the recovering Araquanid. The frozen scales, in particular, seemed to embed themselves right in the bubble, frosting over its surface and making it impossible for the Water Bubble Pokémon to see from within it.

"Now, use X-Scissor!" Ash called, crossing his arms and separating them. Kommo-o did the same, charging forward with the usual bright light until he reached Araquanid at top speed. Gladion cried out, and Kommo-o pierced forward.

_POP!_  The sound of the bubble bursting resounded throughout the whole stadium, and Araquanid stumbled backwards, obviously weakened from the bubble protecting its head going away, along with the X-Scissor slamming into its head. Ash had already issued his next commands, and Serena merely watched. Kommo-o's blinding white fist fired up, slamming into Araquanid's head and carrying it to the sky. Then his jangling tail hit the ground, bringing the Scaly Pokémon into the air. "Mohhhkoh!"

"Finish it with Poison Jab!" Ash's order sounded out. Both of Kommo-o's fists glowed purple and it rained the blows upon Araquanid's head in quick succession, completely breaking off the ice surrounding his right fist. At last, with a final strike, Kommo-o jabbed forward onto its body, and Araquanid stiffened a moment, the poison traveling through it, before it fell, tumbling through the sand and landing on the rocky surface with all its legs splayed out. Serena flicked her eyes to Gladion, the boy's fist clenched as he shook his head, like he realized just who he was up against for the first time in the battle.

"Araquanid is unable to battle! Kommo-o is the winner!"

"An upset turnaround!" Kalas cried to the crowd. They all cheered loudly, though for Serena and the others, they could only watch as the two combatants on the field  _both_  returned their Pokémon. Kahili looked almost amused by that fact, but said nothing. In the row behind them, she could practically feel Brock and Dawn waiting with bated breath. "Ash has pulled ahead of Gladion now. Will the momentum switch back and forth like this through the whole battle? This kind of intense atmosphere is exciting!"

"It is," Gladion called out, though it was clear he was speaking to Ash. "I've always fought for my own life so many times, it's nice to let loose."

"Of course. That's what this battle is all about. You and me, Gladion," Ash said, punching forward. "Nothing else matters but this moment. Not how strong we are, or how weak, or our pasts. We're living for understanding the moment. But…I do have my promise to keep. To lots of people."

"Pikapika!" Pikachu cheered, his hands up high. Gladion looked to be smirking. The trainers' bodies shifted, ready for the next round, each gripping their next Pokémon in hand.

"All right, Passimian, I choose you! Let's do this!"

"Salazzle, let's go!" From Gladion's pokeball emerged the very familiar Toxic Lizard Pokémon, though this one seemed far less harsh when compared to Plumeria's, despite the hissing it was making. Clemont didn't react much, but straightened his glasses with interest. Passimian stood across from it, stamping the ground with his berry. A couple seats down, Korrina seemed to squeal a little over "such a powerful fighting type". Serena just settled in, glancing to Lillie, who had her hands clasped in worry.

"Start off with Double Team!" Ash called, bringing his hands together like he was imitating Greninja. Passimian shouted out, and then his numerous clones all appeared around the area rapidly. Apparently, Gladion already had a strategy for such an occasion.

"Flame Burst, hurry it up!" he called, bringing his hand whipping outwards. Salazzle hunkered down on to all fours as her mouth glistened with burning flame. Then she sent it roaring outward like a large fireball. The Passimian were all running right at her, and one of them was hit by the flames. Then the fireball exploded, sending embers that began to clear away the copies while they spread. The real one was nowhere to be found, so Gladion called his next command, likely to draw him out. "Nasty Plot!"

"Brick Break!" Ash cried, swinging his fist downward. Even Pikachu was emulating him. Passimian appeared behind Salazzle as the Toxic Lizard Pokémon began to have black and purple smoke surround her body. His open palm came screaming outward, shining brightly as it slammed into Salazzle's back. She cried out, but didn't buckle.

"Dragon Tail!" Gladion shouted. Salazzle's tail quickly glowed green as she hissed, and then it came swiping outward. Passimian was hit by the tail and thrown to the side, slamming into a grouping of rocks, landing upside down.

"Shadow Ball!" Ash called, yet again punching forward. Even from his current upside-down position, Passimian's arm remained mobile, grabbing his berry as it pulsed with shadows all around it. Then, with the precision that only he possessed, he fired it.

"Simi!" he cried, flipping up as soon as the berry was on its way, his feet stampeding along the ground. The Shadow Ball struck Salazzle straight in the chest as she stood up, making her grunt and hiss. The berry rolled back along the ground and Passimian grabbed it, all while Ash called out his next order.

"Close Combat!" came the command. Passimian reached Salazzle and punched forward. However, only one punch was gotten off before Gladion's own order came through.

"Dodge, and use Sludge Bomb!" he called, eyes narrowing in the process. Before Passimian's next punch could make it, Salazzle had zipped away, showcasing her usual speed as her mouth opened once again.

"Ssssala!" she hissed as the dark goo issued forth in the shape of a sphere, and shot at Passimian's back. It impacted, smoking powerfully as the orb seemed to collapse and seep into his skin. The Teamwork Pokémon dropped to a knee.

"Poisoned," Clemont and Brock noted at the same time. Serena pursed her lips; Ash wasn't as great with poison status effects as he was in dealing with others. However, looking down at him and Passimian both, she knew they'd both persist until the very end. It was, she figured, quite possibly the reason Ash had stuck with Passimian, despite Salazzle being the one on the field.

"Use Brick Break on the sand with Double Team!" Ash called, stepping forward just a bit. Passimian quickly multiplied on the field, most of his clones appearing over the sand. Gladion issued another command, though it was slightly lost thanks to the sound of Passimian chittering out. The lemur raised his arm, glowing brightly, and brought it colliding on the desert surface. The sand puffed out, and at the same time, Salazzle's tail glowed green swiping across the first layer of clones that were in front of her. It didn't do much, the rest of them now obscured from view by the sand whipping all around.

"Hit it with Flame Burst!" Gladion's order came. Salazzle's tail whipped backwards, and her back sprouted with flames which then transferred to her mouth and sent the fireball roaring into the sand. "Now, get in there!"

"Use Close Combat and beat the sand as much as possible to stop it!" Ash called. The crowd started murmuring and muttering, the goings on within the battlefield almost impossible to see for them. All Serena knew was that sand was swirling every which way, covering the entire wasteland. Lillie was tensed as the battle raged inside the faux sandstorm, but eventually, the sand started to clear, showing Passimian flying back with flames clinging to his fur. Salazzle also looked to have been hit, skidding away from the sand with a grimace as she hit the rocks. "Double Team, and fire a Shadow Ball!"

"Hit it with Sludge Bomb!" Passimian leapt into the air as his clones all gathered around. He held his berry back, swirling with shadows, while Salazzle snapped her mouth towards the air, the Poison attack forming. Then they fired, Passimian shooting downward while Salazzle fired upwards. The two globular attacks met in midair, exploding and creating smoke that briefly obscured both of the combatants.

"Now, Close Combat, real quick!" Ash shouted. Clemont gave a cry upon hearing that, and Serena was right there with him in surprise. In seconds, Passimian was like a shadow, flitting through the smoke as he reached Salazzle. The Double Team hadn't been for cover to  _avoid_  an attack, but to get as close as possible in order to  _make_ an attack within moments! Passimian's fist flew out, snapping into Salazzle's jaw while he made a roundhouse kick that smashed her to the side. In seconds, it became a pummeling as Salazzle was beat back and forth by the punches and kicks the Teamwork Pokémon was using. "Finish it with Shadow Ball!"

"Passiiiii!" Passimian called, lunging forward as his berry burst and pulsed with the shadows. He jabbed it forward and struck home, right in Salazzle's chest with a mighty punch that seemed to explode with the shadows. She flew through the air before landing with a rather decisive thud upon the rocks. Passimian's copies disappeared and he stepped back proudly, stamping his berry on the ground.

"Salazzle is unable to battle! Passimian is the winner!" the referee called out. The crowd erupted with cheers, and even Serena allowed herself the chance to breathe. "There will now be a battlefield shift."

"Yes! Go, Ash!" Bonnie called out. Serena nodded, but didn't say anything. Kahili sat back with an exhale, watching as both trainers called their Pokémon back yet again. It made Serena wonder just who Ash would choose for the second half of the battle that lay ahead. It was certainly an intense one, and far more strategic than the one Ash had conducted against Hau. "He's way ahead! He's totally got this!"

"Yeah, he does!" Hau agreed enthusiastically. Pipi was in his lap while the two of them seemed to be stress eating malasadas. No one chose to remark on this.

"Huh, maybe the twerp  _will_  win this time…"

"Go, twerp! Go!"

"Wobobba wobb!" Serena was almost surprised to hear that Team Rocket was so close to them, though it might have been because the trio had been so silent as they ate through their own stock with the same kind of frenetic stress eating as Hau and Pipi.

"The battle can turn at any time, though. He'll need to be careful, and he knows it," Clemont breathed out. Serena knew that for sure, remembering how certain they'd been that he'd defeat Alain during the Kalos League. Of course, in hindsight, it had been his fault for attempting a move that didn't have any power behind it, but they  _had_  been rather certain at the time. None of them (except for maybe Bonnie, Hau and a cheering Dedenne) were going to make that mistake again.

"Still, only three left is amazing!" Korrina spoke out, garnering some approval by the others sitting around them, especially Astrid, on the edge of her seat to survey the battle. Only Kahili, Brock and (to Serena's surprise) Aria, looked apprehensive. Brock even saw fit to comment on it.

"Ash is doing well, but this could be part of a plan on Gladion's part. Wouldn't be the first time Ash has faced a rival like that," Brock commented, earning a nod from Dawn very swiftly. "Even if it's not, I get the feeling that for these two, it's about more than the battle, but something deeper. Like…they're drawing closer."

"Hm," Serena mused, feeling that Brock had hit the issue right on its head. She stared across the stadium, noticing that that particular spot was where Lionel was seated. He looked engrossed, contemplative and proud all at once. She didn't know why, but he looked up at that moment and nodded at her. It was like he was reaffirming his support of Ash. That made Serena's heart glad, and allowed her to look back to the battlefield without a second of regret; Ash had so many people standing with him.

"And we're back in the action with our field for the second half of this battle! The forest field!" Kalas called out. It was certainly an apt description, the battlefield covered with trees and a large grassy path that wended between them, providing space for battle. Both Ash and Gladion tensed, holding their pokeballs out as they nodded. Even from here, Serena could see they were both sweating a little from the hot lights and the quick pace of battle.

"Honchkrow!" Gladion shouted, calling out his flier. To no one's surprise, ironically, Ash called out his flier as well. Toucannon emerged with a battle cry, though she still looked tired from her earlier battles.

"I'm not surprised…she took a super effective Frost Breath, which always hits harder, head on," Clemont commented, stroking his chin as he looked concerned.

"No worries, man! Ash has got this!" Hau insisted, his own gaze riveted on the battlefield, malasada still halfway to his mouth. Serena only wondered how the field change would affect things, but soon as she thought that, there was no time left to speak. The finalists sprang into action.

"Flame Charge!" Ash called, bringing a fist up. At the same time, Gladion raised his hand to his face to give his own order.

"Steel Wing!" The two birds looked at each other once and then blasted into the air above the trees. Toucannon lit on fire and sped for Honchkrow. On the other side, heading for the impending collision, was Honchkrow, its wings glowing a bright white. The two met in midair and the force of the collision rippled across the stadium, making all of their clothes flutter. "Dark Pulse!"

"Honch!" Honchkrow squawked out, quickly turning around in the air. From its beak came the all too familiar nexus of inky black energy that traveled quickly and slammed into Toucannon's back, causing her to dip slightly.

"Use Hyper Voice!" Ash called. Toucannon now made her own turnabout and opened her own beak wide. The voice grew loud in an instant, to the point that Bonnie covered her ears. The red soundwaves flared outwards, whipping up the treetops as Honchkrow was assaulted by the sound. Branches ripped off, tumbling with loud thuds to the forest floor.

"Night Slash!" Gladion called. Honchkrow pulled itself together, flashing its wing out as it glowed a deep purple. Then it shot for Toucannon, who Ash ordered to get moving. She did exactly as ordered, angling downward and shooting into the trees below. Honchkrow followed quickly, the purple wing slicing through some of the branches in its path as it pursued Toucannon. Serena found her hands gripping her skirt, watching the birds flit through the trees. Then Honchkrow reached Toucannon and slashed out.

"Honch!" it squawked as it slammed into her, causing her to cry out upon the strike.

She fell, spiraling down towards the ground. "Pull up and use Flame Charge!"

"Toucah!" Toucannon cried out and Serena could see the burgeoning flame that sprang forth, allowing her to fly straight up and ram right into Honchkrow, taking it to the air and sending it careening through the sky.

"Brave Bird!" Gladion issued. Honchkrow retained control of itself, snapping wings out for all of a second before bringing them close to its body. The Big Boss Pokémon began to blaze with a red hot fire that then transformed into a bright blue as it aimed for Toucannon.

"Beak Blast! Charge it up!" Ash called. Both trainers stepped forward, their gazes towards the sky as their Pokémon were once more on a collision course. Toucannon was almost heaving a little, but her beak was charging up quickly, glowing that same color of flame as usual. Honchkrow was nearly upon her, and then they collided. It took all of a second, but Serena could see the explosion form and then burst outward at the same time as Honchkrow ripped through Toucannon with its attack, the blow seeming sharply stronger than it would normally be. Flames licked to its body, but Honchkrow didn't relent as it flew away from its assault. There was a bated silence.

"Canna…" Toucannon suddenly groaned, dropping to the grassy floor in a spiral, and remaining there, unstirring. Serena frowned a bit, and it seemed like Kahili was as well, considering her loud sigh.

"And here I thought I had trained him to use his fliers better! Ahh…well, guess that's the kind of bad break you get when up against a Pokémon with Super Luck," the woman commented. The referee was stepping forward, calling that Toucannon had lost the match against Honchkrow. "But…on the plus side, she allowed dealing with Honchkrow to be much easier for the next one. It's burned now."

"Kooroo!" Serena blinked, turning to the battlefield to see that Decidueye had emerged from his pokeball, looking ready to fight before Ash could even return Toucannon. Serena had to give a little giggle at it, especially as Ash's loyal Grass type brought Toucannon back over. The bird raised her head and poked Decidueye on his forehead, like she was telling him to win.

"Decidueye will certainly take home a victory," Clemont commented, but Serena didn't want to say anything as Decidueye ran onto the field. Honchkrow hovered lower, eyeing the new opponent. Serena realized that Lillie was just as silent as ever, and when Serena looked at the girl, she could see the blonde carefully analyzing the battle, almost in the way Sawyer was doing (though he was talking strategy with an excited Seamus and a bemused Miette, who likewise flashed a smirk towards the honey blonde).

"All right, Decidueye! Let's do this! Into the trees!" Decidueye let out a hoot, but otherwise made no other noise, leaping towards the foliage and completely blending in with his surroundings. Honchkrow almost looked confused at the fact its opponent had vanished.

"It's still out there! Use Steel Wing and find it!" Gladion called out. Honchkrow gave a loud cry and flapped its wings, each of them glinting with a white light. The Dark type then flew straight into the trees, clipping along carefully in an attempt to hit Decidueye. Only, Serena knew that the forest was very easily the Arrow Quill Pokémon's domain.

"Acrobatics!" Ash called out, grinning. That reassured Serena, knowing that even battling against someone as serious as Gladion, he could still find a reason to smile. Decidueye suddenly appeared right above Honchkrow with his turquoise glow, kicking his talons downward. The force of the blow rippled outward, slamming into Honchkrow and sending it rapidly down to the forest floor.

"Dark Pulse!" came Gladion's command. Honchkrow twisted around, firing off the beam of twisting dark energy. Due to Honchkrow's falling nature, the blow merely clipped Decidueye's wing, the Arrow Quill Pokémon still very much in action.

"Frenzy Plant, cover it up!" Ash said, bending low and touching to the ground. Kahili chuckled, shaking her head, while Lillie's clasped hands drew closer to her chest. Decidueye's wings snapped out and the roots began to emerge, whipping around wildly and making it completely unclear as to just where Decidueye could strike from. "Leaf Blade!"

"Kooroo!" Decidueye hooted, drawing both of his glowing green blades and propelling himself off of one of the flailing roots as he flew down for Honchkrow. The Big Boss Pokémon had since stabilized itself, just in time for Decidueye to arrive and slash through with a cross shape.

"Night Slash, behind you!" Honchkrow's wing glowed purple at the order and snapped backwards, hitting Decidueye powerfully in the back. He stumbled and staggered, clearly feeling the weight of the hit that made everyone wince. Super Luck and Night Slash seemed positively deadly in a prolonged fight, Serena realized.

"Acrobatics!" Ash called out. Decidueye's talon shot out, kicking behind him. The force rippled out, causing some of the trees to shake, as the attack drove Honchkrow back along the forest floor. He whipped around to make sure he had his opponent in his sights. "Now, Spirit Shackle!"

"Get on the move!" Honchkrow flapped its wings and took powerfully to the air. Decidueye bent his string and drew his ethereal arrow, nocking it and sending it flying. Honchkrow twirled and avoided the move, even as flames erupted through its body, but Ash quickly gave the call to keep firing. Serena had to wonder just what Ash was trying to do after Decidueye fired arrow after arrow that completely missed, sailing through the air harmlessly. Honchkrow was rising higher and higher, away from the forest floor.

"Of course! He's leading it!" Clemont cried, just as Ash threw a fist into the air.

"Frenzy Plant!" Serena's boyfriend cried excitedly.

"Brave Bird!" Gladion's roar came. Honchkrow once more blazed with blue fire and it shot forward, picking up speed as it aimed for Decidueye upon the forest floor. Only, Ash truly was doing just what Clemont had said he was. The Frenzy Plant was whipping around madly, creating almost a bulwark of sorts. Honchkrow slammed into it, breaking apart the plants with its blue blaze, but slowing down bit by bit with every collision. Ash looked straight at Decidueye, nodding, and the Arrow Quill Pokémon disappeared into the trees as Honchkrow broke through slowly, looking around in confusion at its target no longer being there.

"Now, Spirit Shackle!"

"Koorai!" Decidueye cried out, leaping from the trees and appearing overhead as he drew his arrow. In a second, he had fired it, the ghostly arrow wrapping itself around Honchkrow and holding it firmly in place with an explosion of purple smoke.

"Pin it against the tree with Leaf Blade!" Ash called. Decidueye shot downward, drawing forth his green swords. Once he was even with Honchkrow in his descent, he tossed them, the blades hitting into Honchkrow's wings and dragging it up against a tree where it was locked in place. Gladion tried to order a Dark Pulse, but before Honchkrow could open its mouth, Decidueye was on the move. Honchkrow was also flinching from its burn, buying the time that was needed for Ash to strike. "Acrobatics!"

"Sai…koooooorai!" Decidueye called out, glowing blue and reaching above Honchkrow, before descending with a powerful kick from his talon. Honchkrow broke free from the impact of the attack, and tumbled, slamming on to the floor below as Decidueye landed there as well. Honchkrow's wings were splayed out as it didn't move.

"Honchkrow is unable to battle! Decidueye wins!" the referee called out. Said winning Pokémon stretched his wings wide in victory while around Serena, the others all cheered. Team Rocket even looked to be crying.

"Just two more to go…" Lillie breathed, but she didn't lose her air of apprehension. Serena reached across to take her hands and offer her a smile, while the blonde's brother returned his latest fallen Pokémon. He looked even more serious than before, at this point.

"No matter what happens, Ash will find a way. He always does his best to keep his promises," Serena assured her. Lillie nodded, but never once looked away from the battlefield. Even Serena found herself transfixed on the scene, wondering what was going through both of their minds. It had to have been something between them, but already, she could see Ash reaching out to Gladion, like he was waiting for the boy to take his hand. Gladion wasn't there, though, yet…maybe because he didn't feel they were on an equal level yet. Instead, they were communicating through the battle, words not yet being needed. Serena gripped tighter at her skirt and watched, waiting with bated breath.

"Rotom must wonder what Gladion will call out next…There are two options, given the predictive model that Gladion has supported before," Rotom commented, displaying the two most likely candidates on its screen to their group. Serena had a distinct feeling she knew which would be called next, considering that Decidueye had yet to leave the field.

"Toxapex, time for battle!" Gladion called, sending the Brutal Star Pokémon out from the capture device it was contained within. It slammed upon the ground with a growl, looking large and very much like a dome, albeit with two of its tentacle-like feelers up in the air. Decidueye bristled, obviously recognizing the threat before him.

"All right, let's keep ourselves sharp! Decidueye, Acrobatics!" Decidueye crouched a moment and then shot off across the battlefield, aiming right for the unmoving Toxapex. Ash's Pokémon began to glow bright blue and he kicked towards the opposing Pokémon.

"Baneful Bunker," Gladion said, his face scrunched up in concentration. Toxapex's open feelers closed back down, hitting the floor, and a purple, circular shield was formed around its body. The attack hit it from afar, but it did nothing to Gladion's battler. Then Ash's cry came, just as Gladion issued his next order. "Pin Missile once the shield drops!"

"Get back Decidueye! We have to try and not hit that shield!" Decidueye did as asked, bringing a stop to himself and leaping back. The venomous shield revolved a moment longer and then dropped, as the spikes on Toxapex's outer covering glowed, and its feelers lifted back up. The spikes fired out, streaking forward with green trails of light behind them. "Frenzy Plant!"

"Koo!" Decidueye hooted in acknowledgement. His wing swept the ground, and the great big roots emerged from it. The Pin Missile bombarded the plants, exploding with green smoke, while it blew back the dust and dirt, along with the remaining writhing plants, back towards Toxapex. Ash wasn't stopping there, though.

"Leaf Blade!" Decidueye leapt up, drawing forth his green swords and then leaping straight from the top of his Frenzy Plant, sailing forward and beginning to spin for Toxapex. Serena snapped her gaze to Gladion, and saw he was smirking.

"Baneful Bunker!" It happened in seconds. Toxapex's feelers slammed back down, the purple shield was rapidly erected and Decidueye made contact with it. His swords bounced off the shield, bringing him down to the ground, and then he sunk to his knees, shuddering with the poisoning. Swift as Ash and Decidueye had been in their strategy, it hadn't done much good against the rapid shield of Toxapex. The shield faded away moments later, and the feelers lifted back up. Kahili and Clemont both sat forward in their seats, as if they noticed something. From the way Ash's body drew back, and the way he held himself, it was obvious that he had seen it, too, though Serena couldn't figure it out just yet. "Venoshock!"

"Dodge it, Decidueye, and use Leaf Blade on the trees closest to the path!" Decidueye, despite clearly suffering from the poison, straightened himself up and leapt back, just as Toxapex began firing out the purple globules in quick succession from the top of its dome and its small body beneath the feelers. The Arrow Quill Pokémon avoided the projectiles, drawing his blades once more and running to the line of trees. In seconds, he'd slashed forward on a group of them, sending them toppling downwards, littering the path through the forest, though not without clearance room for further fighting.

"Now, hit it!" Gladion roared out. Decidueye suddenly convulsed, feeling the effects of the poison, right as the last Venoshock hit him straight in the back. The Grass type stiffened for a moment, and Ash stepped forward. Then, Decidueye fell, slamming upon one of the thinner trunks that had fallen into the center. The crowd almost gasped in shock, having expected Decidueye to win after yesterday's battle with Incineroar.

"Decidueye is unable to battle! Toxapex is the winner!"

"He'll be in a tough spot if he can't stop that beast," Kahili chuckled out. It was something Clemont agreed to, nodding his head. Serena just had to wonder how he  _could_  manage it; get too close and you were fodder for poisoning, stay too far away and it would hammer you with Pin Missile and Venoshock. Not to mention, if one  _was_  poisoned, then Venoshock became  _exceptionally_  dangerous, if Serena was remembering Toxapex's ability right. It was truly tricky, but looking across to Ash, she could see he had a smile on his face. For someone who typically didn't plan ahead in a battle, he looked to have a stunner of one he was now going for. He gripped his pokeball and sent it flying, calling Passimian out once again. The monkey emerged with a cry, though shuddered a bit from its own state of poisoning.

"Passimian, I've got a plan, so let's do our best to make it happen! Double Team!" Ash cried out. Passimian bent low.

"Passi! Passi! Passimian!" the lemur cried, his copies appearing all around the area of the grassy field, some even hanging carefully from the trees to create their deception. They all surged forward as one, with Gladion watching, trying to discern which one would be the one to attack first. It created confusion as they swarmed closer.

"Brick Break, quick!" Passimian, the real one, leapt from above in the trees, plummeting with all manner of speed to bring its fist crashing down onto Toxapex, who staggered a bit, but still held itself like the living wall that it seemed to be. "Now, Close Combat!"

"Venoshock!" Toxapex's mouth, inside the feelers, shot the purple goo out, but Passimian moved to the side, avoiding the attack that would be deadly in its state, and he reached out to pummel it with his fists alone. The first couple fists made contact, and then Gladion gave the order they all knew was coming. "Baneful Bunker!"

"Now, Passimian! Shadow Ball, right for the center!" Passimian acted precisely. Serena nodded; only Passimian could achieve what Ash wanted him to, likely to test his own theory, whatever it was. Passimian shot forward, rolling his berry swiftly along the ground like a shadow imbued bowling ball. Toxapex's feelers began to close, but before they could, the Shadow Ball struck from in between those feelers, slamming against its body on the interior and pushing it back That sole action seemed to prevent the shield from going up in the slightest. "Great, now use Close Combat, rapid fire!"

"Passi-passsimian!" Passimian called out, kicking forward on the feelers, causing each one to shudder with the heavy blows that Toxapex was suffering terribly from. He also punched, just as one of the tentacles reached up and blocked the blow.

"Liquidation!" Gladion ordered, bringing his hand to his face and cracking his knuckles. Two of Toxapex's feelers now glowed blue and they shot out, punching Passimian on both sides of his bulky body. He shuddered, still feeling the effects of the earlier poisoning, but kept himself going.

"Brick Break!" Ash called, sweeping his hand out. Passimian raised a glowing palm, sending it soaring down. Naturally, though, Gladion was ready this time and the feelers closed down far more quickly than before, creating the purple shield that Passimian struck and rebounded from, sinking to his knees this time due to the poison. "Soon as the shield goes down, use Shadow Ball!"

"Fire a Venoshock!"

"Toxaaaaa!" Toxapex roared loudly, its feelers raising upwards as its shield ended. Passimian struck, slamming upon Toxapex with his shadowy berry, just as it fired the Venoshock that hit him without anything interfering. There was a brief second where Passimian held there, his berry held on the top and straining. Toxapex winced a bit from the impact.

Then, Passimian fell backwards, falling on the ground with a mighty thud. Serena almost wanted to wince. The two were even now, and Lillie was actually looking concerned at how the battle kept shifting so rapidly. The referee stepped forward with his call of, "Passimian is unable to battle! Toxapex is the winner!"

"What an amazing battle we're having here! There's so much back and forth here, I simply can't take my eyes away!" Kalas cried to the crowd. She was pretty sure from both Maika's lack of response and the general air in the stadium, that they both felt the same way. A brief look upward showed all of the Champions equally invested in the battle, none moreso than Cynthia and Diantha. Ash returned Passimian.

"Pikapi! Pika pika!" Pikachu cried out to his best friend, loud enough for all of them to hear.

"Not yet, buddy," Ash assured his best partner, crouching down to his level. "In case we fail here, I'll need you to give it everything you have. If anyone can get through with this, it's the two of us…but I need to show Gladion everything I have."

"Pi," Pikachu agreed, though he still looked worried for his fellow teammates. Ash stood back up, breathing as he smiled across at Gladion. The blond watched him, and then smiled back momentarily.  _Yes…please, reach each other. Neither of you are alone. You're different, and it makes you stronger together, as friends._

"Kommo-o, I need your help!" Ash called, throwing out his second-to-last Pokémon for the battle. Kommo-o emerged, giving a loud and piercing roar, even as Serena noticed the bruises all over Ash's Pokémon from his earlier battle. Shifting her gaze to Toxapex, the Brutal Star Pokémon looked to be holding on just fine, though there  _was_  some sag in the feelers propping it up. "Let's go! Clanging Scales!"

"Counter it with Pin Missile!" Gladion roared out. Both Pokémon acted from a distance, Kommo-o's scales quivering with their telltale sound while Toxapex's spikes glowed white and then fired off in a green haze. Moments later, Kommo-o's scales flew out with their traveling soundwaves, and the two collided in midair. However, with the combination of the soundwaves traveling from the vibrating scales, Kommo-o's attack proved superior, breaking through the Pin Missile and moving to quickly batter with impunity against Toxapex, exploding around its body and feelers.

"X-Scissor!" Ash called, his body language as tense as ever. There was no surprise; the whole entire stadium was tense, knowing just what Gladion would call out. Kommo-o ran forward, pink and purple light blazing from his crossed claws as he approached Toxapex. Gladion's hand flew out, the predictable command leaving his mouth. "Extra speed! Then use Poison Jab, right in the center!"

"Kommo!" Kommo-o cried, pushing forward. He gained a little extra speed as Gladion finished calling for the typical Baneful Bunker. The Scaly Pokémon proved itself faster, slashing against the Brutal Star Pokémon with his X-Scissor, as his arms then uncrossed and then glowed purple. Before the feelers could lower, he jabbed out to pummel the inside. However, seconds later, the feelers snapped down, the shield was brought up, and Kommo-o's attack smashed into it. He recoiled. "Mohhhh! Komohhhh!"

"Poisoned  _again_?" Bonnie asked worriedly. Toxapex was truly proving to be quite the beast on the battlefield, and Serena had to wonder if Ash had already figured out a way to end it yet. She reached over to her blue ribbon, clasping at it as her chest heaved.

"Sky Uppercut, quick, from the side!" Kommo-o, despite the poison now running through him, found the speed to dash around to Toxapex's unmoving and unprotected side, all so he could slam upwards with a glowing fist. The attack connected with the Water and Poison type, the shield flickering out, before Kommo-o managed to throw the enemy into the air powerfully with that same fist. Toxapex flailed as it was sent towards the sky. "Clanging Scales!"

"Venoshock!" yelled Gladion. Even as it flailed through the air almost helplessly, Toxapex still found the stability to shoot off a blob of purple goo from the top of its dome. The globes shot out and rapidly collided with Kommo-o, just as his scales fired off and battered the Brutal Star Pokémon with their explosive soundwaves. The dragon sagged a little, breathing heavily. He wouldn't last much longer.

"Pull back, Kommo-o, and use Sky Uppercut on the logs!" Ash called, and Serena had a sense that he had seen much the same thing regarding his Pokémon (of which there was little doubt, given how close they were). Toxapex fell, and Kommo-o leapt back. Before their opponent could regain itself, Kommo-o's fist glowed and he punched upwards on each of the fallen trunks, each of them looking large and small enough, both, to fit inside the gap of Toxapex's feelers. The only downside was that Kommo-o was left wide open.

"Pin Missile, then Venoshock!" Gladion called, swiping his hand out. Toxapex's spikes glowed and then fired, hurtling through the air with their green streaks, and peppering Kommo-o with little resistance. In fact, Serena wasn't sure how much fight the Scaly Pokémon had left in him to begin with. It made Serena almost want to pray, but the purple globules were already shooting out from Toxapex's gap and collided with the prone dragon. Kommo-o flew backwards with a cry, and then thudded upon the ground with little ceremony. There was a silence, and the dragon didn't stir.

"Kommo-o is unable to battle! Toxapex is the winner!" the referee said and the entire audience in the stadium was filled with much anticipation, half in murmurs, half in great cheers. Yet again, Ash was trailing behind Gladion, a fact he was obviously aware of as he called his faithful dragon back. Two Pokémon…it had seemed too easy before, yet Toxapex had yet to fall, and Ash was down to his last partner.

But that didn't mean he was out.

"Pikachu, it's time! I choose you!" he called, still grinning, despite his fortunes, as he pointed forward at the battlefield. Pikachu's cheeks sparked, looking excited to finally be battling, at last. "We may be down by one, Gladion, but there's no way this battle is over!"

"I never thought it was!" Gladion barked out with laughter. He certainly wasn't lying, from how rigid and geared up for a battle the blond's body was. "But…I've enjoyed this so far…living for this moment. You're right, we  _can_  forget about the past in different ways."

"Then let's do this! Pikachu, Electro Ball!" Ash yelled out. Pikachu hunkered down, his tail lifting up as the electrical orb was summoned on the end of it. He then flung it forward, right for Toxapex.

"Venoshock!" Gladion ordered. Serena swallowed, wondering if Ash would fall into the same issue he had before with the Brutal Star Pokémon before him. Toxapex flung the goo out in its spherical shape, sailing past the crackling orb of electricity that slammed against the Brutal Star Pokémon before it could blink.

"Into the trees, let's go!" Ash called. Pikachu dodged to the side, and the Venoshock impacted with the ground where he'd been just seconds before, causing the grass to smoke. Then, the electric mouse leapt upwards, hiding himself in the trees. "Now, let 'em have a Thunderbolt, but don't put everything into it yet!"

"Pikaaaaa…."

"Baneful Bunker!" Ash's head snapped up and he smirked. It was just what he was waiting for: a chance for his own kind of feint.

"Now, Pikachu, switch it up and use Iron Tail on the wood! Hit it into Toxapex!" Ash called, throwing his fist up. Serena flew forward as Pikachu suddenly showed himself, whipping around with a glowing tail that slammed into one of the wooden trunks on the tree branches that Kommo-o had knocked up there. It was a true team effort as the force behind the Iron Tail caused the wood to go sailing forward. Before the feelers could close, the wood landed in it and stopped them from closing down. Serena almost laughed, flashing back to how Pikachu had taken Sawyer's Aegislash out during Ash's  _last_  League. Pikachu now finished his attack.

"Chuuuuuuu!" The Thunderbolt seared out, striking Toxapex and causing it to twitch.

"He stopped it!" Lillie called out. Serena nodded, clenching at her chest while Pikachu leapt out of his hiding from the trees.

"Quick Attack and into Iron Tail!" Ash said, the giddiest look on his face. There really was no better partner than Pikachu, who dashed forward with blinding light and slammed straight into the inert Toxapex before bringing his tail whipping around powerfully to smack it to the side.

"Use Liquidation!" Gladion ordered, his voice actually sounding a little panicked over the fact that Ash had reduced most of his strategies to limited functions in a matter of just one move. Ash only clenched both fists and brought them close to his chest. Toxapex's tentacles glowed blue, shimmering with water as they aimed for Pikachu.

"Now, Pikachu, use your tail to get in the air, then let 'em have it with Electro Ball and Thunderbolt!" Ash yelled out. Pikachu rolled forward on the ground, the two tentacles slapping together harmlessly on the spot he'd previously been at, while he leapt into the air.

"Pika pika pika pika pika chu piiiiikaaaaaachuuuu!" Pikachu whipped around, sending his pulsing ball of electricity soaring right down onto Toxapex, before gathering more electricity and letting it surge out into the mighty Toxapex with a searing volt of lightning. The Brutal Star Pokémon held on, twitching this way and that, clearly struggling as its feelers all whipped and flapped around, until finally, Pikachu's attack stopped, leaving Toxapex smoking. Then the feelers flattened, and it fell to the ground, fainted at long last. Pikachu hit the ground, grinning and ready for more, as the referee strode forward to make his call.

"Toxapex is unable to battle! Pikachu is the winner!"

"Yes!" Serena and Lillie cried out, slapping hands against each other. The others were all reacting similarly, though there was still a sense of trepidation in their minute movements. Gladion reached out, taking hold of his pokeball and calling Toxapex back. They all knew what was coming next; it was something Ash was well aware of. Gladion didn't call it right away, though. He just looked at Ash, the two of them staring across at one another. Serena's boyfriend seemed to want to say something, but Gladion spoke first.

"I'm glad we could battle like this," Gladion spoke, his voice echoing up to Serena. To the audience cheering and screaming, the words meant nothing, like an acknowledgement of one trainer to another. But to Serena, and Lillie and Clemont beside her, they were everything. Everything that had transpired between he and Ash. "Looking back, the day we met in Hau'oli City, I should have known it would come to this, even though we took two different paths. I couldn't understand, because of my anger towards my mother and the world around me, how you could find such solace with your friends.

"Now, though, I understand. Maybe it's because we're working together, or maybe it's something else…but as your…friend…I'm glad I got to know and battle you."

"Me, too," Ash said, breathing in as he closed his eyes. "We're pretty different, but we still love Pokémon. You've showed that through Silvally and taking over the Aether Foundation, making it what it's supposed to be. Me, I've just journeyed, trying to be friends and understand everyone I meet. So, I'm glad we could meet here. I've come to know you a lot through this battle for sure. For that moment, back at Po Town, what you did…you did it out of love, right? Misguided, but it made sense."

"Pi," Pikachu agreed, nodding back at Ash. Serena could only smile, while Ash continued on.

"So, let's change it! We'll never beat 'em if we can't understand each other, and we can only do that right now, through this battle. I know who I am. You've figured out who you are. So, let's leave nothing behind!"

"Yes. Until the very end," Gladion said. He reached his hand out, just as Ash did the same. Perhaps it was from battling each other to this final stage, the ultimate level, but either way, they had come to understand each other through their battling: how even they were, yet how different in their styles and strategies…and still, each one could read the other. Ash also reached his hand out.

They had connected again.

"Then let's bring a close to this, Silvally!" Gladion called out, tossing his pokeball forth. From it, emerging with a great roar that pierced the buzzing air, was Gladion's friend and loyal Pokémon: a testament to his bond and care for those around him. The very thing that had driven them apart in the end. Now, at last, their final battle would put aside any and all animosity, bringing them together once more, ready for the battle ahead.

"Here it is folks! The mighty Silvally has appeared!" Kalas screamed, whipping the crowd into a frenzy. Serena just sat back, looking to Lillie, who was smiling brilliantly. At long last, they were ready for the battle to come. "This is it, the final moment of the Alola League! Who will walk away with it? Get ready folks, because it's PIKACHU VERSUS SILVALLY!"

"YEAAAAAAAH!" The energy radiated through the stadium, and both trainers readied themselves. Silvally regarded Pikachu with respect, its worthy adversary, while Ash and Gladion smirked across the field at each other. They were standing in the same place, clasping hands. They were finally there.

"Pikachu, Quick Attack!" Ash commanded, pointing forward. Pikachu, wearing a grin on his face, blasted forward, the white trail of light appearing behind him. In seconds, he'd reached Silvally and slammed into it. The Pokémon recoiled, but Ash wasn't finished; nor was Gladion. "Iron Tail!"

"Crush Claw!" Gladion roared out. Pikachu leapt back, his tail stiffening with a white glow and whipping towards Silvally. At the same time, Silvally's front claw glowed blood red and slashed forward. The two attacks collided, sending shockwaves out that surprised Serena and most of the crowd. Pikachu strained for a moment.

"Chuuuu pika!" he cried, breaking free of the claw and whipping around to smack Silvally on the face. Ash crossed his arms and separated them, throwing them behind himself.

"Electro Ball!" he yelled out. Pikachu flipped through the air, his crackling ball of voltage forming, pulsing yellow and black before flinging it at Silvally. The attack made contact, but Silvally shook it off.

"Tri Attack!" Gladion called out, his hand near his face as he smirked. Silvally seemed to howl, opening its maw wide. Three spherical orbs formed, red, blue and yellow in color. Pikachu's opponent then whipped its head, sending them flying right for him. Ash stepped forward.

"Counter Shield!" he yelled out. Gladion looked taken aback by the command, as Pikachu spun in midair, putting off a Thunderbolt that covered the whole area. The sparks of lightning soared all around him and the orbs impacted with the shield, flying off elsewhere into the forest. Gladion grimaced, and held his Z-Ring out. They all knew what was coming next.

"System Change: Ground!" he yelled. The boy's Z-Ring glowed brown, representative of the type that Silvally was changing into, the ground sending dust up as its fin turned brown as well. It was just like Gladion: a tactical move that cut Pikachu's offensive power in fourths. "Iron Head!"

"Pikachu, get on a tree and use Quick Attack!" Ash called. Pikachu ran to the side of the path they had been fighting on, towards one of the trees remaining in the forest, and he leapt upwards. His little feet landed on a trunk and he sprung off, white lights behind him. At the same time, Silvally was cloaked in a metallic light as it charged for Pikachu. The two clashed in midair, both being driven away from each other for a moment upon collision.

"Multi-Attack!" Gladion spat out, though not in anger, but simply the sheer intensity of battle. Silvally was cloaked in brown energy, representative of its type, as it charged forward. Pikachu landed on the ground, not even having the time to turn before Silvally slammed into him, flinging him away.

"Pi-chaaa!" Pikachu cried out in pain, clearly effected from the super-effective hit that he had taken. He tumbled along the ground, bruised already from the single attack, but still standing confidently on all fours. Serena found her breathing almost stop at the sheer will and determination both sides were showing.

"Pikachu, into the forest! Fire your Electro Balls straight upwards!" Ash called out. Pikachu nodded, sprinting to the left and for the line of trees there, aiming towards Gladion's section of the field. Silvally was following him closely, shortly before looking back at Gladion, who nodded. Trainers and Pokémon, each on equal wavelengths with their Pokémon and with each other. Pikachu darted into the forest.

"Pika pika pika pika…" Pikachu cried, forming the largest Electro Ball that Serena could ever remember him making. Then, before he let it loose, it seemed like it had become comprised of multiple, small ones. "…pika pika pika pika pika…CHU PI!" His tail whipped upwards, and the orbs went with it, blasting into the sky, right in the direction of Silvally, who had hopped into the forest and was chasing Pikachu down.

"Turn it around!" Ash ordered. Pikachu brought himself to a halt and quickly changed direction, bounding back in the direction of Ash. Silvally picked up the speed in chase, only as the Electro Balls came flying back down. They rained upon the ground, knocking thick branches loose and sending them cascading on to Silvally's head. It grunted and grimaced as it kept up the pursuit. "Now, Iron Tail on the trees!"

"Silvally, use Crush Claw!" Gladion roared out. Pikachu was moving now, tail glowing white as he aimed for the trees and swiped. With his powerful blows, the trees were sliced, and began to tumble once more upon Silvally. The creature growled, its claw glowing blood red in the process as it slashed at the numerous trees and branches that were falling upon its head, creating the distraction that Ash needed.

"Use Quick Attack!" Ash called, raising a fist up. Pikachu backpedaled once more, shooting off for his opponent, leaping forward over the different logs and wood planks that Silvally had slashed through, in order to slam into it. "Now, Iron Tail!"

"Chuuuuu pika!" Pikachu called, bringing his tail soaring up once more, this time into Silvally's head. The attack proved to have quite the force behind it as Silvally was thrown back on to the forest path, where Pikachu rejoined him. Gladion held up his Z-Ring again. Serena looked to Clemont, who nodded and continued watching with a trembling body. She couldn't blame him.

"System Change: Steel!" Gladion called. This time it was a metallic glow that shined forward, Silvally's body starting to gleam like it was made of steel, itself. "If going against Pikachu's only weakness won't work, guess we'll just take this head on and power up your attacks themselves! Iron Head!"

"Huuuur!" Silvally growled and it began charging forward. The metallic glow once more surrounded its body, seeming stronger than the first time it had used it in battle, and it stampeded down the forest path. Everyone in the crowd was screaming loudly with tense excitement. Ash called for a dodge, but Silvally had to have been filled with its trainer's determination, because it sped up and slammed into Pikachu, driving him straight into the air.

"Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded quickly. Pikachu went spiraling through the air, but called all manner of electricity around his body powerfully before sending it in a raging arc that impacted with Silvally. The electricity exploded, scorching the ground as Silvally hunkered down from the effects, giving Pikachu time to start dropping.

"Use Tri Attack!" Gladion said, flicking his hair as his hand flew outwards. Silvally whipped its head around, the three familiar orbs forming before it shot them off for Pikachu, each now traveling in a random direction. Despite Pikachu's attempt to dodge, he appeared to not know which way to move as all three slammed upon his body. Serena gasped as she saw Pikachu's tiny feet begin to freeze. "Multi-Attack!"

"Pikachu, you gotta break free! Use Iron Tail on the ground!" Ash called out. Silvally roared loudly, body now cloaked in a gray energy that exuded power as it raced for Pikachu. The Electric Mouse's tail stiffened and struck upon the ground as Silvally came barreling towards him with no remorse. "Electro Ball!"

"Pika pika pika pika chu pi-chaa!" Pikachu had just formed his Electro Ball and flung it off, impacting straight with Gladion's Pokémon. Shocks ran their course through Silvally, but hardly slowed it down as it slammed right into Pikachu and sent him flying even further back along the ground. Pikachu struggled to stand, though Silvally also seemed to have its foot slip a bit. Ash narrowed his gaze.

"Use Iron Tail on Silvally's head, then transition to Thunderbolt," Ash said, sounding almost stern and worried, now. Pikachu leapt up into the air, determined to not be caught by any of Silvally's charging attacks as he spun around and brought his glowing tail whirling down onto the creature's head. His body then began to charge up with electricity, transferring it down to his tail.

"Iron Head!" Gladion roared. Both of the Pokémon's bodies glowed with their manner of attacks. Pikachu gritted his teeth but sent the Thunderbolt right through his tail into Silvally, who charged forward. The collision of the physical and special exploded, ripping outward through the entire stadium and pushing the two combatants apart. "Crush Claw!"

"Iron Tail!" Ash roared, both boys raising their fists to the air. Kalas sounded like he was squealing as the two Pokémon ran at each other. Pikachu swiped upward, the attack blocked by the blood red claw, only to bring it swinging around and clashing with Silvally's other, equally red, claw.

"This is totally intense…" Korrina breathed out, almost clutching at her chest. Serena wasn't about to disagree. Pikachu and Silvally continued to clash, a whirl of Iron Tail and Crush Claw meeting and then slamming into one another powerfully. Brock leaned forward.

"They're both fighting for the same thing now…It's not about winning or losing. Am I right?" he observed. Serena nodded.

"That doesn't matter to either of them," she confirmed as Pikachu and Silvally locked attacks once again, straining against one another. "To them, this battle has always been about understanding one another…if they can just do that, it doesn't matter who wins. They're two people, reaching out to one another, saving the other…They're  _reconnecting_."

"Pikachu!"

"Silvally!" The sudden cries of both trainers met their ears, and Lillie stood on her feet, gripping tightly at her drawstrings while Pikachu and Silvally both flew back. Pikachu bounced on the ground while Silvally remained on all fours, heaving with exhaustion from the battle that had been waged thus far. Serena felt a thrill of fear in her heart and she stood alongside Clemont. Pikachu was on the ground, splayed out and nearly unmoving.

"No…" Bonnie whispered fearfully. Even Team Rocket had stopped eating just to hold each other as they shook their heads. The referee stepped forward to call the match.

"Pi…ka…" Pikachu groaned out, pushing himself upwards, straining to stand once more as one of his eyes closed. Serena bit her lip as she watched Pikachu push himself past his limits against the beast killer before them. "Pi…ka…pi…chu…pika…pika…"

"Pikachu…" Ash could be heard breathing out. The entire stadium was silent, waiting with bated breath to see if Pikachu would fall again, or if he had the strength against this unstoppable creature to win at long last. The raven-haired trainer looked down to his steadfast partner and smiled. "Pikachu, it's okay, you know? We did what we came here for, really. Whether we win or lose, we'll still move forward on our journey to understand everyone we know and will meet. That's what makes us Pokémon Masters; not winning this tournament.

"But…if you have it in you, just a little bit more…let's do this together. Let's win the League, keep our promise to our family and make everyone proud! If you can do that, Pikachu, stand with me!" Ash screamed out, all of his passion and emotion pouring on to the crowd in that moment. His hand reached upwards and Serena could swear she heard Misty gasp behind her as Ash gripped his hat and flipped it backwards with a grin. Pikachu got the message. "All right! LET'S DO THIS!"

"PIIIIIIKAAAAACHUUUU!" Pikachu's entire body blasted outward, sending a Thunderbolt to the sky, the likes of which no one had truly seen before, burning with determination for his best friend and lifelong partner. Serena nodded and leaned over.

"Quick Attack!" Ash yelled. Gladion grinned, throwing his hand outwards.

"Crush Claw!" he roared. Pikachu, tired and exhausted, nevertheless found the speed in him to charge forward with blistering speed. Dirt was kicked up and he soared through the air as Silvally's claw brimmed red. Pikachu slammed into his opponent, forcing it back. The claw came screaming out, but Pikachu wasn't giving in.

"Iron Tail and Electro Ball!" Ash screamed. Pikachu's tail swung up, snapping into Silvally's jaw. It screamed from the impact as Pikachu whirled around, forming a large orb of electricity that seemed to expand and contract before flying out from Pikachu's tail and slamming right into Silvally again. The creature flew backwards, digging its claws into the ground.

"Multi-Attack!" Gladion cried out. Silvally was once more glowing silver, growling as it did so. It then charged forward, every footfall sounding heavy in the air while it bore down on Pikachu.

"Dodge and use Thunderbolt!" Pikachu got a glint in his eyes and he jumped to the side before sending a short, but powerfully effective, zap of electricity over to his opponent. Silvally stopped, the glow disappearing as Silvally's claw dug into the ground, breaking it apart from the pain. "Iron Tail!"

"Iron Head!" The two Steel type attacks whipped forward, matching against one another as they collided. They clashed and rebounded, Pikachu flipping off and bringing his tail around again to strike upon Silvally. The mouse was hit by the Iron Head as he did so, flying up into the trees. He landed on a branch, panting, but still in the fight. "Get it down from the trees with Multi-Attack!"

"Electro Ball, hit it quickly!" Ash yelled out. Serena almost wanted to cry as she felt Brock and Gary stand behind her. Ash was grinning. Pikachu's tail raised upward, his Electro Ball forming before he whipped it forward. Another one was formed, and then another. Silvally charged forward, ripping through all the trees like they were paper, but Pikachu kept jumping from tree to tree, dodging the attacks as he peppered Silvally with the electric strikes.

"Chu pi!" Pikachu cried, throwing one straight down that exploded on Silvally's head as the last tree was toppled. The creature buckled. Ash yelled another command, lost amidst the sound of the tree falling. His partner heard it though. Pikachu flew downward, blazing with white light that became like a streaking arrow when he made contact with Silvally, blasting it backwards.

"Crush Claw!"

"Iron Tail!" Both Pokémon were on their last legs, but still they ran for another, prepared to clash once more, the blood red claw matching with Iron Tail. Red sparks flew off in a haze that spat all across appear the battlefield. "Thunderbolt!"

"Multi-Attack!" Pikachu fiercely hit Silvally with his Iron Tail, leaping back as his body brimmed with electricity, just as Silvally charged forward. They met in the middle and collided, Pikachu flying through the air while Silvally was pushed almost all the way across the field, his body sparking with the voltage of Pikachu's last attack. Both were looking like they were about to keel over, grinning at each other, just as their trainers were. It was no doubt time for the battle to end as their arms raised up. Serena grabbed on to the railing, leaning over it, and screamed.

"Go Ash! You can win!"

"Yeah! Yeah! Win, Ash, win!" Bonnie, Rotom and Hau cheered. Clemont was silent, gripping at his knee as Korrina dug her nails into his shoulder. Lillie stepped forward.

"You can do it!"

"Come on twerp and Pikachu! Just finish it already!" Jessie yelled, quickly shoveling in food, just as James and Meowth did.

"Everyone's standing with you," Brock stated, his voice traveling across the entire stadium, and the others all joined in with their own well wishes. From Kahili's tense expression to Maka dropping her sketching materials, and even to Dawn and May practically freaking out, hugging each other. Ash and Gladion both crossed their wrists, wearing grins at their final clash, uncrossing them seconds later. Serena didn't watch Gladion, but she saw Pikachu jump upwards to tap his fist against Ash's before they punched forward as one. Then he leapt up into the air. Storm clouds rumbled around him, granting Pikachu power from both the Z-Move and his own body, all while he grinned at Silvally, the beast glowing a powerful silver.

"CORKSCREW CRASH!" Gladion roared out, spit flying from his mouth. Serena reached over, grabbing hold of Lillie. Silvally began to spin, becoming like a drill that shot into the air and whirred with much ferocity, straight on a collision course for Pikachu.

"Now, Pikachu! TEN MILLION VOLT THUNDERBOLT!" Ash screamed. Pikachu finally pulled all of his electricity in, just as Silvally was upon him.

"Pi-ka-ka-ka…PIKA PIKA!" Pikachu cried out and the electricity blasted out in multiple projectiles, each different in color, like a rainbow, all of them aiming for Silvally. It took only a few seconds, but at long last, the two Z-Moves collided, exploding outward. Silvally drilled upon Pikachu, while all of the streaking, powerful bolts of lightning collided with the beast.

The ensuing blast rippled through the stadium, throwing hats over, knocking people down, nearly breaking the screens in the stadium, to the point that it almost looked like the dome itself was cracking a bit from that collision alone. Yet, amidst all that, Serena could only focus on the two Pokémon locked in their momentary combat before being flung away from the source of the explosion. They hit the ground, each on the side nearest their trainers, scrambling to stand as the result of their explosion in the air slowly faded away. Pikachu looked bruised and battered, while Silvally looked no different, every breath it was taking becoming visible.

The crowd was silent, even Kalas having gone quiet.

Serena continued to grip to Lillie, watching as both Pikachu and Silvally eyed each other, breathing hard from the exertion of the battle, yet neither one wanting to give in. It was like they and their trainers had vanished into a void of white, staring at one another calmly, wondering who would fall first. Serena wasn't sure, but she felt she and the others might have stopped breathing. Silvally's foot slipped, dropping the creature to its knees as it heaved.

Pikachu began to fall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I'm evil, leaving you with such a cliffhanger, aren't I? Either way, I hope this battle was as intense for you to read as it was for me to write. I pretty much wrote the entire battle against Gladion, this culminating moment, in a single day. That's how much I wanted to write this. Of course, it was obviously about more than just the battle for these two, but more that after the events from Trials they could finally reconnect, at last. I hope that came through, especially in time for the final battle. And yes, the result of the battle will arrive next chapter.
> 
> We're almost embarking on the climax, as we have quite a bit of the setup next chapter remaining before we dive into it. But for now, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	23. An Exhibition

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be the first to admit that a large bulk of this chapter will seem…strange. But I have hinted at it, and I used it with the full knowledge of what's to come for a very important reason. Ah, but you don't care! You just want the result of the League! Well, here's Chapter 23, full results contained!

Chapter 23

An Exhibition

_Breathe…Keep breathing…_

His chest rose up and down, in and out, as he steadied himself.

His heart beat wildly.

His fingers trembled, and all around them, the entire stadium had fallen silent as Pikachu was about to collapse from his rather titanic battle with Silvally. Ash prepared himself for the result, right as that bated breath seemed about to burst. He was fine with that kind of ending, except for breaking his promise to Lillie; he had managed to reach Gladion and repair their broken friendship.

"Pika!" Pikachu shouted, the heavy strain evident in his voice as he did so. Ash's gaze snapped upwards once more, and he blinked. Pikachu had stopped himself from falling. His tail was planted in the ground, digging into a cut of dirt in order to prop himself up for as long as it would take. He looked absolutely ready to keel over, but he had the strength and energy to look over to Silvally and grin.

The opposing Pokémon, still kneeling, glanced across at Pikachu, like it saw him as a worthy foe and most admirable adversary. It chuckled, loud enough to definitely be heard in the completely silent stadium around the combatants. Then, it stiffened, eyes going white, and it fell, slamming upon the ground with such a loud thud that Ash was absolutely sure it could be heard all over Alola. Ash's fingers started to tremble even more, disbelief washing over every inch of his veins. The referee stepped forward, and not a sound was heard but for his feet on the crunching grass.

The man raised his hand, and Ash saw it rising in his direction.

"Silvally is unable to battle!" he declared loudly, his voice the only one that everyone there heard. Ash swallowed, and even though he didn't expect it, his whole body was starting to shake. His eyes looked upwards, towards the stands, before the final judgement came, and he saw Serena there with the others, each of them practically holding on to each other. Then… "The winner is Pikachu! The Alola League Champion is Ash Ketchum!"

Seconds of ticking silence. Muted disbelief. Then Ash fell to his knees, and he felt tears prick at his eyes, ones he didn't even know were forming in the first place. At the same time, the crowd erupted with such a frenzy of noise that it was beyond unbelievable.

"IT'S OVER!" Kalas cried with amazing enthusiasm as the scoreboard changed to a single shot on the screen, displaying Ash's face as the victor.  _His_  face! "The Alola League is over, and the winner is none other than Ash Ketchum! After such an intense battle of back and forth between the two trainers below, it's reached an ending! What a moment of excitement! Wouldn't you say, Maika?"

"Yes, very much so! This is quite the time to be alive!" Maika called. Ash still couldn't move, only looking as Pikachu turned back, practically crawling over to Ash. He finally noticed, lunging forward and picking up his very best friend in the entire world, cradling him in his arms as they both cried together. Perhaps it hadn't mattered if they'd won or not, but having done so, Ash couldn't believe it.

"We did it! We did it, Pikachu!" he cried out. Pikachu threw his exhausted arms up high and the two snuggled against each other. They had been through so much together. Every win. Every defeat. Every struggle, trying to figure out who they were as a team and each other, and now they had finally managed it. They had won a League! "Pikachu and all my Pokémon are the greatest!"

"Ash!" came a sharp outcry belonging to a multitude of voices from the stands at his proclamation, and Ash looked up, seeing the faces of all his friends, those who had gathered to watch the match. Lillie and Serena were crying. Bonnie was jumping up and down without a care in the world as Dedenne clung to her, while Clemont was doing nothing to stop her, having seemingly passed out next to Korrina. Somehow, Rotom was popping out streamers and confetti in the ultimate version of its type of celebration. Those behind Serena were all hugging each other, throwing their hands in the air, or standing in complete shock. Mairin was spinning around while Alain smiled with challenge in his eyes. Then there were Sawyer and Seamus, bumping fists as they cheered with their arms around each other, and even Miette looked impressed.

Of course, there were a lot more people than that cheering him on, the entire stadium exploding with cheers over his victory. It didn't matter who they had been supporting before; he was the victor. It was a word he still couldn't believe. Turning his head, he saw Kahili, smirking as she nodded, but he could see the pride in her eyes. There was even Paul, near the exit to the stadium, who looked to scoff and turn right around with a smirk on his lips, almost like he knew he'd win. Ash's eyes sought Lionel, sitting in a seat behind Ash, it seemed, as he clapped with twinkling eyes. It was like he was telling Ash how proud his father would be, though it wasn't like Ash needed that to know. Perhaps loudest of everyone there seemed to be Team Rocket, holding on to each other as they sobbed tears of joy, taking credit for "training him". Ash and Pikachu had to laugh on hearing that and he looked up to the captains, Kahunas and Champions. He couldn't see them all, yet somehow, he felt there was this great pride from them, like they had been pulling for him the entire battle despite their promises of impartiality.

In particular, Ash was able to see Diantha, and he raised his fist to the sky, like he was telling her that he was going to challenge her next, now that he'd finally won his first League. He grinned, and then he heard the tromping across the grass.

"Nice job, Ash. We had one heck of a battle." Ash turned once more, now facing Gladion and Silvally, who was being supported by its trainer as they approached. The raven-haired trainer grinned, and Gladion held his hand out. Ash took it, and was pulled up from where he'd nearly collapsed. "Thank you."

"Nah, we're both to thank!" Ash insisted. Pikachu nodded, agreeing in his exhaustion as Ash reached up to rub against his nose. He didn't know what took ahold of him, but Ash pulled the boy in for an impromptu hug. Gladion was certainly surprised, but nodded with a chuckle. "Besides, it's not over yet."

"Right…the Day of Stars…" Gladion stated, his eyes traveling up to the top of the dome, which was cracked from the earlier collision of the Z-Moves. "Guzma…and my mother…"

"Hey, we'll do it, no matter what," Ash assured him. Before either could give further denial or assurance, however, Kalas was speaking.

"I still can't get over it," the man chuckled, as though he'd been conversing with Maika the entire time, his voice giddy. Maika was entirely silent, though Ash wasn't sure what the reason was, even as Kalas cleared his throat. "But…uh…well, as the officiator of the entire first Alola League, I present to you Professor Kukui and Miss Akela!"

"Woo, cousins! Those were some hot battles, huh?" Kukui's voice echoed out over the cries of celebration and excitement. The professor's face now appeared on the screen, with the violet-haired and beaming Miss Akela right next to him. Pikachu seemed to have recovered some of his strength, scampering up to Ash's shoulder as they all watched. "And a great and hearty congratulations to Ash, our Alola League Champion! Of course, this doesn't mean he has to stick around with Champion duties, same as the Ali'i ka Leilani before him!"

"In fact," Akela said, stepping in when it seemed she believed Kukui would keep rambling on without getting to the point, "as the main officiants of all this, Professor Kukui and I have decided on quite a few things in accordance with the League."

"Right!" Kukui announced, pulling everybody's attention officially to him. "For one thing, due to some pressing matters, the awards ceremony for the Hope Leilani and the Lanakila Conference will be held here in a week's time! Likewise, neither Ash nor Serena will be forced to take their newly won positions, on account of those decisions made by myself and Akela. However, so that none of you feel you've missed your chance to celebrate our new celebrities, we'll be holding an exhibition match for the fun of it!"

"Exhibition?" Ash asked, looking to Gladion, who likewise looked completely confused, shrugging at the mention of it all. Akela cleared things up.

"Yes, as a former Ali'i ka Leilani, myself, and the currently acting Champion of our Alola League, Professor Kukui, himself, will face off against our new winners, Ash and Serena, in a friendly double battle this evening! All to show the fun of our winners clashing against those defaulted to the positions they've inherited, should they choose to take other paths!"

The crowd shared confused murmurs at that kind of statement, but as people seemed to reason it out, they grew excited again for the prospect of another battle. Ash looked towards Serena, many of the little statements and hints over the last few days making sense. They grinned to each other, even across that expanse. His League challenge was over, but the battles were still heating up. Gladion scoffed next to him. "Of course. They want to keep her eye fixed on the stadium, and a big event with some of the most well-known people on our side would be a smart way to do it. Helps that it'll be with those in the most public positions. Not that I would know what you or Serena plan to do."

"Ohhh…so that's the reason?" Ash asked, some of Gladion's reasoning flying over his head. Tapping his chin, he supposed it made sense. With the Day of Stars coming that very night and dawn the next morning, Lusamine would likely be keeping a very close eye on all of their actions from that point forward. Keeping her focused on a big event where he and Serena, two people that actively opposed her, would be taking part, would allow the others to move freely, ensuring things to go off without any interference. Kukui was soon speaking again.

"That's right, and I can tell you, I'm lookin' forward to it! Woo!" Kukui cried out cheerfully. "So, everyone, make sure you're right back here this evening! In the meantime, a big round of applause for our Alola League winner, Ash Ketchum! In order to celebrate, if he  _and_  his friends would join us at the League castle here for some fun times before tonight, we'd be very excited!"

"Kukui…" Akela said snappishly. The professor suddenly laughed loudly and spoke into the microphone.

"Which reminds me, at the awards ceremony in a week, we'll be announcing the Alola League's official Elite Four, as well as who will be taking the public positions of League Champion and Ali'i ka Leilani! You won't want to miss that, but for now, see you all tonight!" At that, he stepped away and Kalas took over once again, just as enthusiastic as ever, though Ash wasn't listening. Gladion clapped him on the back.

"Come on, League Champion, we've got a 'party' to get to," the blond said, throwing an arm around him in a rather surprising gesture as he ushered him off of the field. Ash looked at Pikachu, and he seemed to finally get it that when Kukui mentioned the party, it was less for celebration and more for the finalization of plans. Ash's gaze narrowed, switching to that serious mode which had developed during his time in Kalos.

Their battle was fast approaching.

Both Ash and Gladion entered into the hallway off the arena, cutting off a majority of the excited cheers and light, each of their bodies once more becoming tense with the anticipation of what was to come. Ash could only imagine what was going through Gladion's mind. While the boy had cut off his mother a long time ago, the fact that she was still the cause behind everything that was about to occur had to have cut him deeply. That Lillie was still invested in potentially saving their mother probably didn't help matters. The blond sighed.

"So, we're almost there…" Gladion breathed, the sound coming off as loud in the increasingly silent halls that were leading them towards the exit from the stadium. Ash didn't want to imagine how crazy it was outside, though he was grateful that, at least, it wasn't going to turn out like the last League Conference did. Gladion's fist was clenching. "Everything we've built up towards."

"Yeah," Ash responded, realizing his hat was still flipped back. He turned it forward once more. "But no worries. We're all working together. I don't just mean our attack group for the Ultra Space, but everyone else that's come to fight and make sure we make it in. There's still a chance."

"I'll be relying on you, then," Gladion told him simply. Ash nodded, feeling Pikachu doing the same right next to him. It was an affirmation on everything they'd been through together up to that moment, and their mended tie. Ash reached a fist out, and Gladion bumped against it, just before they opened the doors to the entranceway of the stadium. Somehow, Ash wasn't surprised by the ridiculous number of people there, most of them being unfamiliar faces.

"Ash! Gladion! What an awesome battle!"

"They're, like, totally my heroes!" cried a girl from the crowd. Ash rubbed the back of his head, chuckling at the enormous crowd before them. Gladion looked to be handling himself well enough, befitting someone that had taken over the Foundation, but he still looked like he wanted to get out of there. Clearly League fans were relatively the same all over, though it did mean things were a lot more difficult to deal with in terms of getting out.

"Please, move! Coming through!" cried a distinctively feminine voice, and the two boys turned in its direction. As they did, they saw the sea of the crowd parting, while a gurney rolled forward with Nurse Joy and, to Ash's surprise, Brock behind it. His oldest friend raised a hand in greeting, nodding to tell the two boys what they wanted to hear. "I think it's best that we all see to your Pokémon while the interim celebration is happening."

"Oh, thanks," Ash said, allowing Pikachu to hop from his arm and on to the cart. He and Gladion also placed their pokeballs there (the blond having returned Silvally already, of course). Once that was done, Brock got behind them and began helping them through the crowd, which remained parted for the presence of Nurse Joy. That lasted all the way until they had finally emerged outside the stadium, where it was less packed and more quiet.

"Ash!" came the sudden call from all of his friends. Ash looked forward and saw each one gathered there, standing and smiling. Naturally, Serena and Clemont seemed to be at the front of the pack, but it was Bonnie who ran straight forward without caring and hugged him. Dedenne, likewise, jumped to the gurney and nuzzled against Pikachu, who collapsed in an electrified heap.

"Nenene!" Dedenne cried out, almost freaking out that he'd potentially killed Pikachu before Clemont had approached and pulled him away with a comforting pat.

"You were awesome, Ash!" Bonnie cheered. Unsure of what to do, Ash reached out and patted her on the head, grinning wide.

"Thanks, Bonnie! And to everyone!" he called out. Gladion was walking on, though it wasn't as if he was leaving the group. More like he didn't want to take away from letting Ash reunite with his friends in victory. "Without all of your support over the years…me and the rest of the team could have never done this!"

Part of him really wanted to share words with everyone that had pushed him forward and brought him to this point. How despite their squabbles, Ash had valued Misty's friendship on the early parts of his journey. How May had helped him grow into a mentor (along with her brother, of course). How Dawn was like a sister to him. How Cilan and Iris helped him to not have too big of an ego (mostly by crushing his, of course). How Brock was perennially there for him. How rivals like Hau, Alain, Sawyer, Paul (not there, naturally) and even Seamus and the others, had pushed him harder than any others. How Kahili had taken him practically to the brink of death but then built him up to become stronger. How Team Rocket, for all their antagonism, had somehow supported him in their all too strange way.

And, of course, how Clemont, Bonnie, and Serena had been his family, reminding him to never give up until the very end, even if they hadn't shouted it. Then, there was Lillie, the blonde stepping forward to hug Ash the moment that Bonnie had separated her arms from him.

"Thank you, Ash," she whispered, and he could feel her tears on his shoulder. They were tears of joy that bled into tears of determination. She didn't say anything, but Ash knew the reason for it: seeing him battle and connect with her brother…it helped her feel like maybe she could reach her mother, even if just for a moment.

That alone told Ash that the final battle was upon them.

Lillie pulled back, and Ash looked over to Serena and Clemont. The inventor nodded, informing Ash that they were ready, while the rest of the group turned to face the castle that they would all be meeting in. He stepped forward to meet with the two of them, and Serena moved in softly, offering him a slight kiss as congratulations. The time for celebration would be later, but Serena's hand back in his felt right, reminding him that in just a few short hours, they'd be battling together to buy everyone the needed time for their setting up.

"Let's go," Ash said, now walking forward. Bonnie and Lillie filled in the ranks while Nurse Joy continued to roll the gurney alongside them, moving towards the castle. There were no more words that needed to be shared in that moment. Anything that would need to be said, either to show gratitude or to bolster courage, would be said in mere moments. Regardless, there was a fire burning inside all of them as they strode forward, not even the chilled air of Mount Lanakila affecting them until they'd stepped inside the castle walls.

The doors closed behind them once they had, cutting off any of the spectators that could be listening in.

Even without that audience, by the time they'd ascended the overly large staircase to a banquet hall that Ash had not yet been in, he could tell that those gathered were still in a huge group. He also realized that Team Skull wasn't even there, making this just a fraction of the forces that would be battling it out on the Day of Stars in just twelve hours. The group split apart, and Ash scanned the area, watching Hau approach his grandfather, while the ever-energetic Acerola quickly approached, along with Kiawe behind her.

"Nice one, Ash! That was an even more thrilling battle than ours," the boy said. Ash grinned in thanks, taking Kiawe's hand and giving a one-armed hug. It did feel a little stiff, though, both of them tensed up for what was about to occur. In fact, now that he was here, Ash could see all of the prominent figures that had gathered, including the panel of Champions and Kahunas. He even swore that he saw Burnet and what looked like Plumeria, though the latter's face seemed to be on a screen, communicating from afar, the same as Aidan.

Ironically, instead of the Champions being the ones to guide the group, Lionel was the one standing at the front, hands dug into his pockets as he looked over everyone gathered, each of them quieting down. Ash started walking forward, feeling the need to get as close as possible.

"Tomorrow is the Day of Stars," Lionel spoke, his voice echoing off the frosted windows and into the room at large. "Tomorrow, whether we like it or not, the Ultra Wormholes  _will_  open, and those dangerous beasts that many of you have seen and fought will pour out into this world. They won't stop until Michael's vision for this world comes to pass: total destruction. If that happens, and this tipping point goes the wrong way…then there's nothing left for us. In order to fight against it, we all have our parts to play, as you well know.

"From this moment on, even with this exhibition battle, the Alola League is over and the battle for our world begins anew. Everything we've done has led to this point. Every plan we've made and effort we've coordinated. This is our precipice, and  _we must hold it_!"

"Of course, we will!" Ash shouted, not even feeling a sense of nervousness in walking towards Lionel and standing at the head of their gathered forces. "We did it last time, and we'll do it again right now!

"I know we've all failed before at the things we've tried," he continued on, turning as the words bubbled up inside him with the need to be spoken to everyone there. They were all listening, Champions included. "Here in Alola, I failed when it truly mattered the most. I couldn't stop Guzma. I couldn't stop Lusamine. I struggled with finding who I was…but now…now is when those failures don't matter. All that matters is all of us here, together, standing to fight for our world! We won't fail!"

It was short in nature, yet seemed to have gotten to the point across for all of them, nodding their heads in acknowledgement. Ash suddenly felt Serena squeezing his hand, having been there the entire time for his speech as she smiled.  _Bring back the smiles_. It was something she'd always said, and standing now, together with him, Ash knew it was possible. They had all found themselves.

Clemont had become his own person, not chasing after their shadows.

Bonnie had started to become a powerful trainer, able to care for herself.

Lillie had finally formed her own sense of self, irrespective of her mother.

Serena had realized who she was in the grand scheme of her goal.

And he had finally come to understand who he was and wanted to be as a trainer: one who could understand others through battling. With that, he could heal any of the rifts that were caused. Like Guzma; even the one between the leader of Team Skull and the two he was about to battle. It gave him his own personal reason for the upcoming battle, and his words were truly all that needed to be said, especially when Lionel chuckled out.

"Yes! We won't fail!" Lionel shouted, drawing the attention back to him. "We'll protect our world from the Ultra Beasts and deny Michael his final, gasping breath!"

"So, what's the final plan?" called a voice from the crowd, sounding distinctly like Paul's. Lionel nodded.

"I'm not going to go over every detail again, since you all know the battle formation for what's about to occur. However, with the added details, we know this," Lionel pointed out and one of the screens in the room changed to show a map of Alola with six different blinking spots. "We know now what we need to fix the Moon Flute, and how to enter the Ultra Space. So, this is how everything will work.

"From the moment this briefing is finished, ARC's major Attack Corps will move out, along with every trainer and Champion, for the Altar of the Sunne. Likewise, the Kahunas and captains will move out to their islands to protect each major city." Ash glanced to the side, seeing each of the Kahunas there, nodding with looks of determination, except for Nanu, who was scoffing like he could hardly care. "That said, the important point is speed for the early part of the operation. For now, Professor Kukui's plan of holding this exhibition battle will keep all eyes on Mount Lanakila, including Lusamine's from inside the Ultra Space, presumably, with Ash and Serena here for it. In the meantime, we need to work to get into position so that the second the battle ends, they can get to where they need to without worrying for anyone else.

"Clemont, Bonnie, you two will head for the Lake of the Moone to repair the flute and pull this other Cosmog out. Kahili has already offered to take you there. Gladion and Lillie will be taken by Kiawe and Team Rocket respectively to the ruins on Ula'ula and Poni Islands, in order to beseech the Tapus. When the battle ends, Ash and Serena will head for Akala and Melemele for their own. This needs to be done  _before_  the Day of Stars happens! Otherwise, things will get a lot more difficult."

"Don't worry, we've got this!" Ash insisted, punching forward with his and Serena's clasped hands. She was grinning right alongside him. "Once we have it happen, we'll all head for the Altar."

"And then it becomes imperative, no matter the forces before you, to get Ash and the others into the Ultra Space! From there, Hau and Team Rocket will protect them inside the space. That is all that matters!" Lionel declared. It was the most definitive statement, and Ash and Serena were both nodding. The showdown was imminent. Knowing that, Ash made one final turn to the trainers, Champions, captains and Kahunas gathered before them and he raised his fist into the air.

"Remember, everyone, don't give up until the very end! We won't, either!" he declared. Even for those who may not have seen it before, the crowd of gathered trainers emulated him, raising their fists high to say they were all prepared for the battle they would be fighting. It was a sense of solidarity that Ash had only truly experienced once before. "Now, let's go!"

"Yeah!" came the call from even the most stoic of trainers in the crowd. Serena squeezed his hand, like she was indicating that this was how much he managed to inspire everyone. Of course, he felt she did it just as much as he did, if not better. Lionel now hopped down from the stage and clapped him on the back.

"Congratulations, Ash. Shame I won't stick around for the exhibition battle, but…world's at stake," he said, smirking a little at him. Ash nodded, adjusting his hat just a moment when suddenly he heard the sound of rolling wheels.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu cried out and Ash turned with a brilliant smile. His best partner leaped forward, and he let go of Serena's hand to catch him. Likewise, he soon noticed  _all_  of his Pokémon jumping towards him. He gave a sharp cry and was suddenly buried beneath them all.

"I think you'll be fine, though," Lionel chuckled out. He did offer another glance to the couple, however, nodding his head. They would no doubt see each other again on the battlefield. So, for now, the important point was simply getting there with everything they needed. "Everyone, move out!"

"Kooroo!" Decidueye's cry came, almost smothering Ash with his wings at Lionel's call. He couldn't see anything from underneath his Pokémon, not even Serena's laughing face, but he could hear the sound of the tromping footsteps as they all moved out of the room to whatever vehicles (likely helicopters) would take them to their locations.

"Okay! Okay! You guys are all amazing! Thanks to all your hard work and teamwork, we were able to win!" Ash said, sitting up, but still making sure to hug his entire team. Lycanroc nuzzled against him, almost sniffing at his hair happily. "And, again, Serena…thanks for the support from you and everyone else."

"Then it's time for us to move out," Gladion said, approaching alongside Clemont, Bonnie, Team Rocket, Hau and Lillie. Seeing him there prompted Ash to stand and look directly at his friends (and frenemies, he supposed) that were involved with the conflict. Ash nodded, and stuck his hand out. "We'll see each other at the altar. In the meantime, you both do your best in that exhibition battle. Make it interesting."

"I don't think anything with Ash could ever  _not_  be interesting," Clemont responded, chuckling. "And no worries about us all meeting. I already have a plan to pull that other Cosmog out, even if it takes a little time. You just keep Nebby safe, Lillie."

"Of course, I will!" Lillie assured them, fingering her pokeball and bag that had her two ever-constant companions inside.

"Blah blah, cut it with the sappiness," Jessie snapped and she pointed towards Serena for a moment. "Twerpette, you better not sully that title you took. Beat the pants off that person. I don't care if it's some pointless battle or not."

"I'll do my best, Jessie, long as you and the others take care of Lillie."

"Hey, even if they don't, I will!" Hau said with his perennial grin. James, Meowth and Wobbuffet quickly saluted, and then all of them threw their hands in regardless, grins present on their faces. Even Bonnie jumped up to slap her hand into the center.

"Let's all be super cool and win!" she cried out. With her, Dedenne and the two forms of Zygarde all cheered loudly.

"Rotom will aid in the best way Rotom knows how!" the Pokédex even cried, its screen looking fired up.

"All right, guys! This time, we're in it together, and we're gonna win it all!" With Ash's words, he raised his hand, carrying the others with him. It was their promise made only with their confident grins. Having done so, the others all turned away and began to walk towards those who would ferry them to the islands, Rotom floating after Clemont and Bonnie. Well, all of them moved to join someone except for Team Rocket, who looked to be kidnapping Hau and Lillie so they could run off with them for their balloon. Ash looked to Serena. "Guess it's just us, for now."

"Yep," Serena answered. For a brief moment, Ash remembered their time earlier that morning, where they'd drawn so close; closer than ever before. It made him happy inside, and feeling like he wouldn't have any regrets. They'd get there sooner or later. "Ash…I'm very happy I could travel through this region with you."

"So am I," he said, meaning every word of it as he stepped closer and she placed her hand on his chest.

"That's why, I understand…when we're done here, I plan to return to Kalos and become the Kalos Queen," she said seriously. Ash nodded. Inside his heart, he should have known that was coming, especially after her stunningly brilliant victory in the Hope Leilani. She  _was_  quite a bit like him nowadays. "I've given it thought, and I think Miss Akela needs to be the Ali'i ka Leilani again, just the same as I need to do this. I don't expect you to come with me, because you'll always be there…and I know that being a Pokémon Master means that you'll want to travel more and see more, not stuck in just the position of Champion here, or my boyfriend there."

"It does, but Serena, that doesn't mean-"

"I know," she said softly, reaching up just a little to kiss him once more. "I just want you there for the Master Class, just like how I'll be there for your battle against Diantha. Miss Akela was right about us needing space, and I know that we'll need to separate eventually as well…at least, physically speaking. So…until then…can I…

"Can I just ask for one more moment? Just for the two of us?"

It took a moment for Ash to process what she was saying, but once he had, he nodded. He gave her all of that moment that he had to give.

And when evening fell, the stars shined so bright and close together, a phenomenon which did not go unnoticed by the audience approaching the stadium for the exciting exhibition battle. Ash and Serena both approached it together, Pikachu on Ash's shoulder once more after he and the other Pokémon had taken their time off. They flushed with euphoria and excitement, avoiding their suddenly adoring fans as they made their way inside the stadium, brimming with excitement.

"Are you ready?" Serena asked, squeezing his hand.

"Of course," Ash insisted, grinning right back at her as she moved closer. It had been something unexpected, yet Ash could view it as a blessing: a blessing to learn something more before he encountered  _him_ again, and to impart that knowledge and those feelings onward. Ash and Serena stepped back into the hallways and walked forward, side by side towards the battlefield. Kalas' voice began ringing out to the cheering crowd, each excited for the battle that was about to occur. Ash and Pikachu were excited, already knowing this was for fun. Yet, at the same time, it was a chance for them to buy their friends time; for Ash, he saw it as an opportunity to really get to know Professor Kukui, after having battled him twice before, and Miss Akela.

"The stadium is packed! The lights are on! And though the Alola League and Hope Leilani have been settled, we're gathered together once more for what is sure to be a fun and exciting bout, staving off that want for a ceremony to crown our victors!" Kalas called to the great anticipation of the crowd. The bright lights of the stadium burst from the entrance to the battlefield, and Serena and he walked up it together.

"Yes, a chance for us to see the best of the best go at it here in Alola!" Maika yelled to the crowd. Ash and Serena finally stepped on to the stadium's battlefield, already chosen as a basic dirt battlefield. Opposite them, Ash could see Miss Akela and Kukui approaching, looking as comfortable as the two old friends would. "I'm giddy at the chance to see the graceful Miss Akela in action once again!"

"I'm sure they'll all give us a show!" Kalas said. The four came to a stop. Ash looked to Serena, and then to their opponents for the exhibition. It wasn't about winning or losing, not that it had ever been. Kukui tipped his hat a bit, like he was clearing that up for them: they were buying the time for the others to get into position without anyone noticing. Ash nodded back.

"Well, cousin, who'd have thought, huh?" Kukui said once his hat was raised back up. His other hand gripped for a pokeball, and Ash noticed that Akela had done the same. "When we met in Hau'oli City that day, I'd been told you were strong…but having the chance to face off against you, Ash? Woo! My blood is burning!"

"Hopefully not too much," Akela stated, a soft and serene smile on her face. "Save some of that burning blood for tomorrow. Though, I would like to enjoy what these two have to give. See-"

"See our dreams at the end," Serena said, gripping her own pokeball and holding it aloft. "Thank you, Miss Akela…pushing me forward on the Ceremonies helped me realize some very important things, the same way that Ash has. So, you two can throw whatever you want at us, we'll take it and send our dreams back to you. Give you something to look for again, once you've retaken the position of Ali'i ka Leilani!"

"And when it's over, we'll make things right," Ash insisted. To his statement, Kukui and Akela looked at one another, almost surprised. They had clearly gotten the message. For now, this was a battle to understand the two of them, and gather their feelings; ones he could share with Guzma when they met. "So, let's go, professor!"

"Our battlers look ready to go, and I can say I have no idea how this will turn out! Sit back, folks, and enjoy the amazing ride!" Kalas yelled out, and the referee for the League battles stepped forward.

"We'll now begin the exhibition match between former Ali'i ka Leilani, Akela, and Acting Champion, Kukui, against the new Ali'i ka Leilani, Serena, and League Champion, Ash! This will be a timed double battle, with the battle over when both Pokémon on a single side have been defeated or when the time runs out! You will have an hour! Begin!"

The crowd cheered, while Ash grabbed one of his pokeballs and tossed it forward. "Greninja, I choose you!"

"Braixen, let's go!" Serena called. It was something they had already discussed for a perfect pairing, despite opposing types. Across from them, Kukui and Akela had also called their Pokémon out, and Ash noticed the glowing Z-Ring on Kukui's wrist, shimmering with an all too familiar light at its base, though one different from a Z-Crystal.

"Kukui and Akela have called Gallade and Lurantis!" Kalas called out, just as the four trainers stood there, waiting for the other to make a move. Ash glanced once more to Serena and nodded. They were happy to make the first move. Before they began, Ash briefly looked up at the repaired dome and the drawing stars.  _Everybody, please be ready. We'll be there soon, and give you as much time as you need._

"Greninja, let's start off with a Water Shuriken!" Ash called, briefly looking to Serena. She nodded, pulling just a little closer, their Z-Rings touching. Their Pokémon took encouragement from that, even against those that they knew were expert battlers. Greninja ran forward, clasping at his side to pull out his water throwing stars. He tossed them forward.

"Braixen, Psyshock!" Serena commanded, throwing her Z-Ring-less hand forward. Braixen spun her wand around and pointed forward. The crowd cheered, excited as Braixen seemed to dance, the twirling purple ribbons floating around her before they shot out. With great precision, she wove them through the shuriken, like string, as both attacks hurtled for Lurantis and Gallade. Ash watched the opposing duo, trying to find what made them tick.

"Petal Blizzard!" Akela called, just as graceful as ever. Her Lurantis seemed to chitter a bit before swiping its sickles a couple times. Around her body whirled a storm of pink petals that blasted off, moving to intercept the incoming attack. "If you would, Kukui. It's been some time since we battled together like this."

"Of course! Swords Dance!" Kukui said, grinning as the cherry blossom petals seemed to obscure the very air around them. Ash once more looked to Serena. They knew this battle wasn't going to be easy, and the most important point was holding on to the end of that hour, buying as much time as possible. The Water Shuriken and Psyshock combo slammed against the wall of petals.

"All right, Greninja, use Cut on Gallade!" Ash called. At his feet, Pikachu was cheering loudly with encouragement. So was the crowd, though he felt it was weird to not hear any of his friends in that same crowd.

"Ninja!" Greninja cried, running forward at a quick speed and calling his bright blades to his hands. Serena also pushed her hand forward, ordering a Flamethrower. The two ran parallel to one another, the speedy Greninja moving forward at the same rate as the gushing torrent of flame.

"Psycho Cut! Woo!" Kukui cried. He wasn't alone in giving orders.

"Fury Cutter! Block that Greninja!" Akela's voice called. Ash narrowed his eyes, having almost forgotten that this was, indeed, a double battle. Lurantis leapt high and hurtled towards Greninja, blades glowing a bright white as they clashed with Greninja's own blades, slashing back and forth as the Ninja Pokémon attempted to block. At the same time, the petals cleared away and Gallade was slashing downwards, sending a powerful purple sickle through the air. It impacted with the flames, cutting through it like it was nothing until it slammed into Braixen, tossing her back. Lurantis made a rather graceful spin, using its shorter stature to spin under Greninja and slice upwards. Both he and Braixen fell backwards.

"Just like old times, eh, Akela? Especially now that we seem to have worked out the kinks," Kukui chuckled out. Ash swallowed a bit. They really were moving flawlessly. Kukui with brute strength. Akela with all the grace in the world. It was like they were diametrically opposed to the two of them…perhaps that was why they had sought them out all those months ago.

Only now, Ash wanted to seek after the two of them; the ones that had ultimately changed their lives with their simple requests. Serena laughed a little under her breath.

"It almost feels like we're not even fighting a battle," she said to him, so only Ash could truly hear. He nodded, looking across at their opponents, Kukui swinging his arm back and forth. "More like a test…making sure we've learned what we're supposed to or something."

"Hmm, maybe," Ash admitted, but he started to smirk a little, making Serena raise her eyebrows. "It's not like this is about a battle for them. Just a little fun…but I wonder if we can break their teamwork with our own! Figure out the weak link there!"

"Nothing to do but try!" Serena assured him. They bumped their fists together and faced forward again. "I'll cover you! Flamethrower!"

"Brai brai!" Braixen cried, dancing forward like she was in a performance. The fire swirled around her with every spin and then flew out in spirals, wide enough for a Pokémon to slip through.

"Greninja, Aerial Ace!" Ash called, punching forward. Greninja nodded and dashed yet again, diving into the swirling flames. Braixen maintained control of them, making sure not to hurt her partner as Greninja managed to reach Gallade without interruption. The flames battered across both Gallade and Lurantis for a second, though neither Kukui nor Akela looked concerned.

"Close Combat, buddy," Kukui said, waving his hands back and forth. Gallade's eyes flashed and it glowed brightly, running right at Greninja. The two combatants kicked outward, smashing against each other. Ash's eyes slid over to Akela, wondering when she would make her move, while Braixen's flames faded away. Greninja and Gallade moved forward, locking limbs with one another.

"Sweet Scent," Akela finally called. Serena tensed, and both watched her. Lurantis rubbed its sickles together, the alluring scent floating out. Greninja faltered for a second, but he still retained enough presence to kick his leg around and bring it slamming into Gallade. Akela scoffed and sighed. "Leaf Blade!"

"Lura!" Lurantis cried, jumping into the air and right for Greninja, its sickles glowing green as it slashed across the Ninja Pokémon's chest. Greninja leapt back, barely missing Gallade's kick and landing next to Braixen. He nodded at her. Ash's lips twitched upwards a little.

"I get it now," he said to Serena. She looked to him. "They're really great as a team, but there's something missing that's sort of holding them back. It's sort of like…like how we're great together but…"

"But with Clemont and Bonnie, we're an unstoppable team; like when we faced off against Mega Latios," Serena concluded for him. He grinned and nodded. "I noticed, too. They're complete opposites on the battlefield, like us, but they make it work, and they know it. Yet it feels like Kukui is more this balanced middle ground. Like he's the brains behind the grace."

"Yep. Someone's missing!  _That_  we can take advantage of," Ash said definitively. "All right, Professor, we just finished warming up, ourselves, so how about we take this to the next level? ! Gotta make sure we're all in top form for tomorrow!"

"Oh? You planning to beat me?" Kukui laughed out, his eyes twinkling, but he raised his wrist. Akela shook her head with amusement. While Kukui did that, Ash raised his hand skyward. Greninja did, as well, while Serena grinned, sending that smile across to Akela. The sky was even darker; time was moving on.

"I don't need to beat you!" Ash called, grinning as water swirled around Greninja's figure. The crowd went silent as it coalesced, forming into the giant shuriken on his back. Kalas cried out, informing the crowd of the Bond Phenomenon taking place. "Because I  _know_  you…Greninja, Aerial Ace!"

"Yeah, cousin! That's what battling's all about! Gallade, Mega Evolve!" Ash stepped forward, grinning; it was just as he thought. Kukui had never been a normal professor or trainer, but one far above most. Gallade began to shine, its form changing shape as it formed a cape, its arms truly becoming like blades. "Clashing abilities to see what the other trainer's got! That's my kind of battle! Close Combat!"

"For sure!" Ash called out, reaching his leg up as Greninja did the same, kicking out and matching with Gallade's own kick, the resulting clash sending a rippling wave of wind across the battlefield. Ash could feel it in that connection, not only with Greninja, but also against Gallade, the fun that Kukui was having in the battle…and yet, there was yearning, one that even the professor denied.

"Don't count us out!" Serena called, spinning a bit as Braixen twirled her wand. "We may be on the edge of a battle, but if we can make people like yourself smile, Miss Akela, then our whole journey will be worth it. This is just going to be our way of making you smile even more! Hidden Power!"

"Braiiiiixen!" Braixen called, throwing her branch forward and bringing bright silver orbs forth. She fired them off, careening through the air. Ash knocked his arm against hers, while Akela seemed to cover her mouth with a laugh.

"I've no doubt…just seeing the two of you is enough. Reminds me a bit of myself and my late fiancée, though I'd have hope that you can go beyond."

"Then let's battle! Woo!" Kukui shouted. Lurantis sprang into action, summoning forth the maelstrom of pink petals as the silver orbs battered against it, all while Greninja kicked outward, right into Gallade's chest and driving it backwards.

"Now, use Water Shuriken to slash them both!"

"Psyshock, Braixen!" Kukui and Akela didn't seem surprised as Greninja reached back and sent his giant shuriken flying forth in a wide arc. It hit Lurantis first, knocking her back, before landing a blow on Gallade and returning to Greninja. Braixen also slashed downward, sending the purple streaks firing out through the air, twisting and turning.

"Block it with that Psycho Cut!" Kukui said, practically thrusting forward. Ash threw his hand out, grasping at Serena's. The crowd seemed to really cheer from that one, Maika gushing brightly.

"Look at our two newcomers, filled with all the joinings of youth! Oh, their teamwork is sizzling!" Maika called, clearly thrilled at the sight of it.

"Block that with your shuriken!" Ash called. Greninja dashed in, spinning his shuriken around and holding it like a shield as the Psycho Cut hit. He wasn't damaged at all, but strained against the force, pushing the attack back and slashing outward to send it away. The Psyshock continued on uninterrupted, raining down from above into both Lurantis' petals and blasting upon her figure. Gallade was also hit, though it used its cape to defend itself. The Petal Blizzard continued to blow out cutting across Greninja. "All right! Cut!"

"Leaf Blade!" Kukui yelled out. Greninja summoned his watery kunai and ran at Gallade. He practically disappeared, reforming right at Gallade, whose blade arm glowed the usual green and slashed out, meeting with the Cut. They slashed around, each attempting to hit the other. Ash once more saw Akela, smiling as gracefully as ever.

"Sweet Scent!"

"Now, Braixen, fire Hidden Power!" Serena said as both she and Ash worked in concert with one another. The crowd clearly enjoyed it, their minds taken away from anything but the battle; Ash hoped Lusamine was the same. Braixen bent low, but sent the silver orbs flying out just as Lurantis began to produce the usual aroma. They slammed into her, allowing the rhythm of their opponents' battle strategy to be put off. Kukui and Akela looked at each other, almost impressed, before smiling. Serena squeezed his hand joyously.

"Go, Greninja!" Ash called. Greninja ducked as Ash did, bringing the Cut sailing upwards and knocking into Gallade's head, sending him stumbling backwards. "You guys have awesome teamwork, but you're missing one, aren't you?"

"But we're not! Because we're doing this for him, too!" Serena said. She had understood him and what he was getting at. Kukui and Akela didn't respond right away.

"Swords Dance!"

"Cover with Petal Blizzard!" They both reacted instantaneously, Lurantis running forward and sending the damaging cherry blossom petals outward, softly falling, but dangerously whipping around as they cut out. Greninja crossed his arms while Braixen held her wand up, beating them back as they damaged her lightly. Ash didn't know how long they'd been fighting, or if it was even close to an ending…none of that mattered. It was just the battle and the moment for all four of them. A chance to smile, and know the reason why.

"Cut through it!" Ash called. At the same moment, Serena yelled out for a Fire Blast. It was the perfect support system, even reminding Ash of the battle against Zinnia, when the two had worked so perfectly together. Greninja flitted through the flames, twirling his kunai around and almost gathering up the flames to slash forward, setting the cherry petals ablaze as he rammed into Gallade and sliced outward.

"Guess they've got a point, looking at it here," Kukui finally said now, taking his hat off and tossing it to the side. Akela brushed her hair back. "Until they came along, I never gave it much thought, you know…but we did cut out the third member of our trio: the Triumphant Trio, yeah?"

"Or he cut himself out…" Akela noted, pursing her lips a bit. "We've always tried to cover for his gap that he left since his youth…but I guess we never really could. Guzma was something unto himself."

"There we go! Now, Serena!" Ash's girlfriend turned her head as they removed their hands from one another. Ash gripped at his Z-Ring, snatching from it the glowing red crystal of the Firium-Z and tossing it right off towards her. She caught it and placed it on her Z-Ring. "Greninja!"

"Braixen!"

Ash and Serena crossed their arms in the moment of realization and distraction for their opponents. It took a lot of the battle, but Ash finally understood. Kukui and Akela didn't hate Guzma for what had happened to him at all; they regretted their own actions in cutting him out, instead of being there for him because of the system on the islands. Those were feelings tangible enough for Ash to grab hold of, and were ones that he could share with Guzma. The couple's arms came down now and each began making different movements.

"Hydro Vortex!" Ash yelled out. The blue light burst from his Z-Crystal, colliding with Greninja's body. He raised his Water Shuriken upwards, the weapon growing larger and larger before he tossed it forward. It picked up speed, whirling around like it had a mind of its own, turning itself into a mighty cyclone that cut at their opponents and left them trapped inside it. At the same time, Braixen leapt up high, gaining altitude over the cyclone while her wand pointed straight down into the twister that was whirring around Gallade and Lurantis.

"Inferno Overdrive!" she called out. Braixen gripped her wand with two hands and then fired. The large fireball blasted outward, sailing down with spiraling heat that slammed upon the trapped opponents and exploded. Braixen flew back, Greninja leaping up to catch her as they landed softly on the dirt field. The smoke from the combined Z-Move plumed outward and Ash and Serena waited as it cleared away.

"Woo…they almost had us, Akela," Kukui said as Gallade and Lurantis walked forward, both looking like they were about to keel over, but continuing on. "One more blow and I think they might topple over."

"Well, they didn't battle through the Alola League and Hope Leilani for nothing…worthy successors, in a way, especially to read us the way they did," Akela's voice called. The smoke at last cleared away to show the two opponents smiling at one another. Ash looked up to the night sky, the sounds of the cheering crowd fading away around him as he noticed the scoreboard that was counting down. "Guess we bought enough time, you think?"

_5…4…3…2…1…_

"And it's over! The match ends in a mighty draw, though this commentator suspects Ash and Serena were about to clinch victory! Might be my favoritism, though; I love those two!" Kalas roared out, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Greninja and Braixen leapt backwards as the amphibian's form faded away, turning his head towards Ash. The raven-haired trainer nodded, pleased with the result of the battle. Serena looked pleased as well, running forward to greet her Pokémon. Ash followed suit while Kukui and Akela returned theirs, briefly feeding them some berries. "What an exciting way to celebrate these two illustrious events and give us something to talk about until the day of the awards ceremony!"

"For sure! Miss Akela's stunning and graceful movements. Kukui's power and mind. The way they clashed against our recent winners, putting them to the test and drawing even is the kind of battle I love to see!" Maika boomed towards the crowd. Ash reached Greninja, putting an arm around him as Pikachu leaped up to join them.

"Great job, you guys!" he said. Then his eyes swiveled on to Serena, whose eyes were closed in a smile. The crunching of footsteps on dirt told Ash that Kukui and Akela were approaching, causing them all to face their elders. "And thanks for the battle! We learned a lot."

"Not just you, cousin," Kukui said, walking over and slinging an arm on Ash's shoulder. He leaned in, practically whispering. "Guess we were still a little off."

"It's been years since the two of us actually battled together," Akela sighed, placing her head on the palm of her hand while she supported her elbow. "Since before I became the Ali'i ka Leilani and before Kukui challenged the Kanto Elite Four. Before…"

"Before Guzma, huh?" Ash asked, folding his arms. The topic of conversation had just gotten more serious now, the meat of what the battle was truly about on display. Both of the former classmates nodded. "Don't worry. Guzma will be okay."

"Maybe," Kukui mumbled out. He looked like he was caught between not caring and showing concern. He started to rub the back of his neck. "Though, to be honest…I feel a bit responsible. It's why I couldn't stand him. Like Master Hala said: the greatest failure."

"We all were responsible," was Akela's statement. She stepped forward, looking Serena right in the eyes. "Guzma was our friend, but because of his failure and ours, we abandoned him. Whatever happened after is a result of that mistake, including Lusamine. If there was something we could do to fix it…"

"There is," Serena said, and she pointed upward. Ash followed her finger and understood exactly what she meant. "You can make sure  _we_  can save them."

"Yeah!" Ash indicated, nodding with both of his Pokémon. "We'll find a way, even if it's the last thing we or they do. You can be that trio again; fill in the gaps in your battling style." Kukui regarded Ash a moment in the midst of the cheering crowd. It was broken only by people coming towards the battlefield while Kalas announced a sort of afterparty for the spectators that were there.

"Then, we'll count on you while we protect the people here, Ash," Kukui said, reaching his hand out. Akela did the same for Serena. Two people, and they were finally going to heal their rifts. Just as his dream had taken him years to realize, he had still realized it. They had spent years apart, but Ash and Serena would mend that, along with everyone else.

Clasping Kukui's hand, Ash looked up once more. The stars were pulsing with greater light, as some of the people in the stands were pointing it out. In just two short hours, the Day of Stars would begin. Ash looked to Serena, who was returning Braixen with a nod, whispering for the professor and fashion mogul to look after the people on Mount Lanakila. Then she pecked Ash on the cheek and they began to run off, hearing the wishes of being safe from their previous opponents as they ran for the outside, and the battle that lay beyond.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Ash won the League! I mean, the result was fairly obvious. Of course, there's no time to really celebrate it with the Day of Stars barreling down, so instead, I decided to do this exhibition match with our two winners. However! It was always meant to be sort of not really a battle, hence why there was no result. It was buying time for the others to move into position so once Ash and Serena get there, they can act instantly. Likewise, it was about Guzma, now that the showdown with him is truly impending. A bit of a weird one, I'll admit, but something I felt was vital to the story to show Kukui and Akela's emotions in relation to Guzma, and how much they both suffer from his absence. Essentially, this chapter was the buildup to that final climax, perhaps part of the climax itself, which begins next chapter! Of course, it was still difficult to write, so I hope it made sense and you enjoyed…
> 
> Now that we're close to the end, I hope you enjoy this final ride of the story as we head for the ending! Until then, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	24. A Summoning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter to kick off the climax here, though I'm surprised at how many people missed the short, but suggestive, line last chapter. Some of you didn't, though. But now it's time for Chapter 24!

Chapter 24

A Summoning

Ash's feet beat along the hallway, holding tight to Serena as he ran, hoping to get ahead of any movement from the crowd to the outside. She kept pace with him, only utilizing any other movement to take her hat off and shove it inside her bag. Greninja and Pikachu were right there with them, both of them keeping pace and looking ready to attack anyone that would stall them. Ash didn't look back, not needing to know the support they were receiving from Kukui and Akela. He simply firmed up his resolve to do what needed to be done, and what he promised.

The couple broke into the atrium of the League stadium, currently quiet, though beginning to grow louder from some spectators that were hoping to make it down to the stadium floor. They probably wanted to meet with the victorious duo, and Ash felt a little bad about flaking them off, but he wasn't about to stop. Instead, he just nodded to some of the policemen that were standing around the area, having moved in during the interim of the match. In seconds, he caught sight of Looker, who turned and nodded, directing his fellow officers around the area.

_Vrrruuuum._  The sound made Ash pull to a stop, being so sudden and expected. He turned to look to Serena, who had definitely heard it as well, considering her widened eyes. However, neither Pikachu nor Greninja seemed to hear a thing, or if they did, they weren't stopping. The only reason he considered that they hadn't heard were the officers, who weren't reacting. Perhaps it was a thing for those chosen by the Tapus, but Ash wasn't sure.

"Hurry," Serena breathed out, and Ash stopped wasting his time. He let go of her hand and they ran for the outside, blasting through the doors. The second they were past them, the police that were stationed at the doors grabbed the entrances and pulled them shut, as if to lock them. Ash and Serena both skidded to a stop and Ash dug right into his backpack, pulling out the old flute.

"Here goes," he said, and he blew straight into the flute. It had been a long month or so since he'd last seen Latias, but he had to figure she would still be around, likely vacationing in Alola until the time had come. The sound from the flute was almost silent, too high-pitched to hear, yet melodic all the same. As soon as the note was played, Ash shoved his flute into his pocket and waited for just a second. "What do you think that sound was earlier?"

"No idea. Could be something to do with the Z-Rings, I guess…or maybe we're just attuned to the sound of the Ultra Space. Maybe it's starting to crack wide open." He supposed either of Serena's guesses were possible.

"Kuuuuuuu!" came a cry, one familiar to both of their ears. Looking up towards the night sky, darker than usual due to a lack of stars from all the overlapping, Ash could see a shape flit across it and then dive downward. He reached his hand upwards and waved, right before Latias landed directly in front of them.

"Glad to see you," he called to his father's old partner. Ash reached forward, patting her gently as she nuzzled into it. Pikachu also jumped on top of her head, greeting her joyously. "Hope you're doing well, because it's time."

"Can we count on you?" Serena asked, also reaching over to pet her. Latias nodded, lowering just a little more so that the remainder of their small party could climb on to her back. Ash made sure to sit front, while Serena gripped him from behind and Greninja hung to the back. It was rather considerate of him, especially when he didn't know what Pokémon he'd need to use for the battle ahead. Thankfully, the battle with Kukui and Akela hadn't damaged him or tired him out, his steadfast partner quickly recovering.

"All right, Latias! To Akala Island and the Ruins of Life! And hurry!" Ash called, pointing in the direction that he figured Akala was. Latias gave off a sharp coo and then shot off into the air. Serena gripped tighter, and Ash even found himself having to pay attention in not letting his own hold falter. Latias zoomed around and shot off, once more, for their destination. Silently, he urged her to move quickly, while he looked at the stars that were still visible.

"Like worlds overlapping," Serena mumbled, barely audible over the wind whipping past them. Ash swallowed, not finding anything to say. She had a point, after all, creepy as it was. Latias remained silent, herself, her jet speed continuing them forward in order to speed over the ocean surface. Down below, Ash could swear he saw Po Town, and possibly even Keoni looking upwards…yet there was no sign of Nanu, but instead Acerola. At least, that was what his eyes were telling him.

_Vrrruuuum._  The strange sound echoed out again, only audible to their ears, and now Ash looked down to see that his Z-Ring was glowing. It seemed that Serena's was, as well. This time, instead of freaking him out, it gave him a sense of comfort. To him, it meant that Gladion and Lillie had arrived at their destinations, and their Z-Rings were now resonating with one another. His eyes narrowed with resolve reflected in them, and Latias began to slow, angling her body downward as the landmass that was Akala came closer. There was someone waiting for them down below.

"Nice match, you two!" called the voice of Olivia, dressed as provocatively as ever while she cocked her hips to the side. "I watched everything I could…Tapu Lele seems restless."

"Well, the Day  _is_  almost here!" Serena shouted out. Latias finally pulled to a halt, allowing Serena to jump off. Olivia caught her before she could hit anything she shouldn't. "I'm not surprised if the Tapus are all getting that way."'

"The Totem Pokémon, as well," Olivia stated. Ash noticed now that she had her Lycanroc out next to her, shiftily watching the area for any untoward movement. "Mallow and Lana both have contacted me to say that Wishiwashi and Lurantis are acting up. No doubt Turtonator is moving towards Royal Avenue as well. They  _are_  in tune with nature, and these things are no doubt disturbing that natural flow."

"Then we'll just have to do what needs to be done and sew up those portals before too many Ultra Beasts can break through," Ash said, clenching a fist and holding it aloft. He looked over to Serena. "I'll be back to pick you up as soon as we know it's worked, okay?"

"Yes," she said. That was it for the two of them, and Ash patted Latias softly. She got the message, pulling away swiftly and shooting into the air. "We're heading for Iki Town on Melemele now, okay?"

"Kuuuuu!" Latias called, ensuring that she had received the message. Now that the slightly extra baggage of Serena was missing from her back, she picked up speed, to the point that Ash felt his mouth start to ripple. Pikachu flew back, into his chest, as Akala was soon lost from view, replaced with Melemele on the horizon.  _Vrrrruuuum._  Ash breathed, realizing that it truly meant exactly what he thought, since Serena had likely already stepped inside the Tapu's chamber. Another loud cry shuddered out from the northern tip of Melemele, confirming what Olivia had said about the Tapus and Totems, both.

Iki Town was close.

"Latias, once you've dropped us off, just patrol the air. It shouldn't take too long, okay?" Ash told her. She nodded and angled downward, speed picking up like she was a rocket. Trees began to whip and crack in her presence, though none of them toppled, and the homes of Iki Town seemed fine as she reached near the ground. Ash grabbed on to her back, and once she was close enough, he leapt off, feet hitting the dusty ground as he held on to Pikachu. Greninja landed next to him. In seconds, Ash realized how silent the town was.

"They've evacuated," boomed the familiar voice. Ash looked up, noticing that Hala was standing at the edge of the forest which bordered Iki Town. The raven-haired trainer walked forward, towards the older Kahuna. "I've been waiting here for the sole purpose of having you meet with Tapu Koko. Once it's taken care of, I'll be heading for Hau'oli City. Ilima is there now."

"All right. Then, let's go," Ash insisted, punching a fist into his open palm. Hala grunted, turning around and, despite his bulk, breaking into a rather quick gait. Ash still had no problems keeping up with him. The sky was ever darker now than it was even before, making his heart beat wildly as he stampeded through the brush he had traveled through twice before. He had to wonder just how much time was now left before it would all begin. They had to hurry.

In but a minute or two, the Kahuna had led Ash and his Pokémon to the bridge, running across its rickety surface, though it still held. For a moment, Ash wondered why he hadn't landed straight in front of the shrine, when he slowly realized how narrow the path was becoming. While he and the others had no trouble slipping through said narrowness, there would no doubt have been quite the amount of difficulty for Latias, especially when it came to landing. Trickling water soon met Ash's ears, along with what smelled like burning incense.

Hala pulled himself to a stop. "Tapu Koko must be inside."

"Right. Then, we'll do this," Ash insisted, walking past Hala. He still had the thought to turn back once. "Thank you, Hala. For everything. I promise we'll protect Alola, and bring Guzma back so you can hammer some sense into him!"

"I've no doubt of that," the older man chortled, his belly jiggling just a little from it all. Ash stopped, pursing his lips, and nodded, turning right back around. For just a second, despite their dearth of time, Hala's voice called him back rapidly. "One last thing, Ash. I believe Tapu Koko could have chosen no better than you. You proved that earlier today."

"Thanks, but," Ash said, grinning at the older man, "I couldn't have done it without all the others, either. They help make me who I am, because I strive to be myself for them. If that makes sense."

"It makes enough," Hala assured him with crinkling eyes. Taking his words as permission, Ash continued onward, running for the shrine that he had visited just a week or so ago. It seemed like so long, and yet, not long enough. Entering into the space, Ash felt that the air was heavy in there, filled with the intensity that was Tapu Koko's own aura. It was practically electric as he walked in. He had to have been the last one to arrive at their particular shrine, and his Z-Ring was glowing madly, leaving both Pikachu and Greninja tense. Ash walked a little forward, feeling his hair stand up on end.

"Tapu Koko!" Ash yelled out, though nothing happened. The guardian deity was not appearing. For a moment, Ash wondered if it was a futile effort, or maybe if he just had to wait for it to appear. Until he remembered Hala, the moment that he had taken him to the shrine following their battle. How much Hala said that the Tapus were the very manifestation of power and love on the islands. Knowing that, Ash kneeled down, clasping his hands together.

"Tapu Koko, for your bravery and battle, I ask you to help us," he spoke quietly, but firmly. "Our world is in danger from the other world, and if we hope to have any chance of securing it, we need you, and all the others, to help us. Please. Give your power to the Moon Flute you created. Repair it, so we can finish what was ultimately started all those long years ago."

"Pika pi-ka," Pikachu agreed, himself praying to the mighty deity. It had felt strange, like he could hear Serena, Lillie and Gladion making the same exact prayer to beseech the guardian deities which had chosen them. Ash breathed in, waiting for any response, his eyes still closed and his head still bowed in reverence. He felt Greninja twitch, and there was a sudden buzzing in the room, rippling through his body with power, the likes of which Ash had never felt before. There was a crackling sound, and Ash looked up.

_Kauuuuuu!_  came the shrill cry of the guardian deity, now suddenly floating before him. It came closer, until its nose was practically touching his, electric blue eyes plumbing the very depths of his soul. Then it floated backwards a little.  _Alola is in danger. Now comes the time for us to protect it, body and soul. For this, we gift to you a crystal like no other, so that you may end the conflict, and finally put right our past mistake._

"A…crystal?" Ash asked. Tapu Koko nodded and reached its hand forward, just as it had the day it gave Ash the Z-Ring. That same ring burst with light, nearly blinding Ash as power settled into it. It felt almost heavy, like it was the true strength of the Tapus that none had ever experienced before, except for ancient times. When the light faded, there sat on his Z-Ring a pale, yellow crystal, brimming with power supreme.

_You will need it to call us. For this, we have spent our time crafting it, and no other end. Now, end the shadow that is plaguing Alola! Smite it!_

"And the Moon Flute?" Ash asked, coming to stand instead of remaining kneeling. Tapu Koko regarded him a moment longer, and he feared the guardian deity would flee. It was just a moment, fraught with tension. Then, Tapu Koko began to shine with electrical, yellow power. It took a moment, circulating and permeating its body, before that same power blasted through the roof of the shrine forcefully, arching into the sky. Ash grinned.

The Tapus had been summoned. The battle for Alola was officially beginning from this moment onward.

* * *

"Mount Lanakila is definitely in a state of immense excitement here, tonight," yelled Maika's voice from the screen that Bonnie was holding in her hand, gripping it tightly while Rotom watched it with her. Clemont looked up at the sound of that, wiping sweat from his brow. Before him sat an incomplete apparatus that he had been working on since earlier that evening. "After that exciting exhibition battle, ending in a draw thanks to the time running out, this place has descended into a state of utter euphoria."

"It would seem that they achieved what they wanted to," Kahili commented. Clemont swallowed, noticing her leaning against one of the broken pillars at the ruins on the lake, while she waited with folded arms. Bonnie continued watching, Dedenne on top of her head as she looked on in worry at the screen.

"For sure, Maika. I wouldn't be surprised if the partying lasts until tomorrow! Even Professor Kukui and Miss Akela seem to be entertaining that very idea!" Kalas said over the screen. Clemont breathed out slowly as Chespin's vines snaked out, along with Bunnelby's ears, to hand him the tools that he needed, in order to complete his work. Turning away from the sound of the video, he looked to the pulsing dark portal in the middle of the dais at the Lake of the Moone, no larger than an oversized berry. He couldn't deny his apprehension about reaching in there with his invention. "I know that  _I_  can't wait to get down there! Though it's a shame that our winners, Ash and Serena, seem to be nowhere present."

"Because they're busy saving the world," Bonnie commented, and she seemed to decide to end the broadcast. The likely reason was their upcoming task, but Clemont also suspected it had to do with the fact that they were starting replays of the past week's battles and events. "Clemont, are you almost done?"

"Yes, I should be…not that I have much time, anyway," Clemont sighed out. He took the wrench that Bunnelby was handing over and began to finish attaching the claw and power pack to his device. Kahili looked on with respect, clearly not even aware of the design specs or anything.

"You're sure it will work?" she asked, stopping her leaning and stepping forward. Her arms unfolded as she did so. Clemont finished wrenching everything he needed to on the device to make sure it was all connected and wouldn't break within seconds. At least, he very much hoped that it wouldn't just break within seconds. He didn't care if it  _ultimately_  did, but right now they needed it to last as long as it could give them. Y seemed to agree, looking back and staring Clemont in the eyes. He couldn't deny how awkward it still felt to stare into the eyes of what felt like their mortal enemy, but he allowed himself to ignore it.

"I'll have to make it work," the inventor stated confidently. "This is my role in the group. Ash, Serena and the others are all counting on me to support them, so I'll do whatever it takes to do so!"

"Rotom thinks it will work, just looking it over…" Rotom commented, but that was hardly a confidence boosting statement. At the very least, the Pokédex wasn't fooling around with them, recognizing the seriousness of the situation.

"Well, just hurry up. We're running out of ti-" Y suddenly leapt back in the middle of his sentence. Clemont looked up, and Bonnie drew close to him. Bluey and Squishy both hopped out of her bag, like they were forming a protective force. The inventor could easily see why. The black portal had suddenly pulsed yet again, expanding outward, as though it wanted to burst. Or maybe it was that something was straining against it, trying desperately to break free if it could. Either way, it spelled that things were getting close now, and they would have to hurry. "Well, that's a little new."

"The sky is dark…" Kahili spat out, sharing their feelings of desperation that were growing. Clemont shot his gaze into the sky, seeing that the stars truly were being covered up rapidly, aligning themselves with one another and leaving most of the sky black, despite its cloudlessness. The inventor walked forward, absentmindedly taking hold of his pokeballs and returning his brave Pokémon. In the meantime, he grabbed for Vikavolt's, knowing he'd be needing his help. "Do you think Lusamine has become aware and chosen this as the first place to strike?"

"Who cares? ! I'm sure Ash and the others will be ready in just a sec," Bonnie proclaimed, bringing out the Moon Flute that Serena had entrusted to her some time ago. As she did so, the paired Sun Flute became visible in her bag, which Kahili looked down at for second. It was still hanging by a thread, glowing softly. Yet again, the inky blackness expanded outward and then shrunk once again. At the same time, there was a loud thud from it, like something knocking, wanting to break loose.

"Then, are we ready?" Y asked, popping open his pokeball. Hydreigon emerged with a roar, while Toucannon appeared next to Kahili, landing on her shoulder. Clemont almost felt like if he breathed, that same gasp of breath would disappear into the inky darkness of the sky.

_This is it…_ he couldn't help but think. Before, during the battle at Geosenge, he had felt apprehensive, but now it was a whole different issue. The very sky was starting to make him feel like he was suffocating. The colliding stars, a phenomenon so impossible that it could only be described as the Ultra Space beginning to consume their world, made him feel like they could fall at any moment. His hand trembled, but he wasn't scared. Pressing the button on his pokeball, Vikavolt came out.  _The final battle…again._

"Bonnie, stand in the center!" Clemont ordered of his sister, moving towards his finished apparatus and pushing it carefully towards the pulsing portal. It was growing larger, and starting to thrum louder, as the sky continued to grow darker, but for a single line of bright light that looked to be bisecting all of Alola, and perhaps the entire world, despite any time differences. Bonnie obeyed, walking to the dais at the center of the area, but keeping distance from the portal. Kahili was close to her, obviously considering it near enough to the portal to warrant protection.

Clemont stood back, silently praying for Ash and the others to succeed. He swiveled to Vikavolt and nodded his head. The Stag Beetle made a scratching noise and moved towards his invention. He had to feel momentarily proud of it, especially if it would save the world. Y watched over it, Hydreigon ready to strike if needed. Clemont gave it a once over: a large remote-controlled crane, with a claw that could safely grab on to the other Cosmog from a distance, complete with a camera to navigate by. With Vikavolt attached, it would also mean a near endless supply of power to get the job done.

"Come on, Ash…" he called out, tapping his foot as he waited. Bonnie was tensed in the center, gripping at the Moon Flute while they waited. He was starting to almost feel sick from the portal that was there, waiting to break free and open.

"Denene!" the Antenna Pokémon called out from his perch on Bonnie's head. He was pointing towards the sky and Clemont looked in the direction indicated. He wasn't alone. A grin blossomed on his face while Bonnie jumped up and down giddily before throwing the flute upwards.

"Here we go!" she yelled with her own grin. Clemont just moved his foot a fraction, preparing himself. Lights were arcing through the sky, four of them, to be exact. Each one was a different color, rustling the trees around them powerfully. It was definitely the very thing they were searching for and had planned for. Y smirked a bit, muttering something about how Serena had succeeded. Clemont looked at it as  _all_  of them succeeding.

The lights continued racing towards them, and the entire ruins seemed to glow, as though they, too, were made of the Tapus' power that was now converging overhead. The red glow made it first, and then the pink beam. They began to mix and mingle before the purple beam joined in, and soon the yellow one. They formed a nexus of energy that swirled around, colliding into brilliant white light that covered up any of the darkness in the night sky. Then it blasted that beam downward. For a moment, Clemont was fearful of Bonnie standing right in its path, and even Kahili seemed to lunge for her. However, the energy stopped before it could hit either of them. The Moon Flute was suddenly pulled upwards by some force of gravity, spinning out of Bonnie's hands and into the light.

Clemont almost felt he needed to shield his eyes from the whiteness that was consuming the flute. Bonnie almost tripped backwards, caught by Kahili as the woman also stared at the occurrence. Y was too busy looking at the pulsing portal, and Clemont wasn't even sure exactly where to look in the first place. He did decide to look at the spinning flute, mesmerized by the event before him. As if made of magic (something that would be considered absurd if it wasn't coming from the power of a guardian deity) the flute began to knit itself together. Almost like sinew, the threads of the flute began to weave together, restored by the power of the Tapus. Different colored lights, each one representative of each of the Tapus, shot out, raining down on them like a soft shower.

Then it broke, fluttering down like falling petals of the rainbow. The Moon Flute remained in the air a moment, allowing Clemont to get a good look at it, glowing softly with its lunar glow. It had certainly been restored now, softly and peacefully floating there, not a single portion out of place. Then it dropped and Bonnie caught it. The light fully receded, dousing them in relative darkness, but for the almost pulsing stars in the sky.

"It really did work…" Y breathed out, looking like his lifelong quest had practically been achieved. There was no surprise there, after the years of work he had put in to make it happen. Still, the man shook his head. "Miss Bonnie, play it now."

"What song?" Bonnie asked, holding the Moon Flute close to her chest. Clemont flashed back to their time on the Altar of the Sunne.

"It doesn't matter, Bonnie. Just play a note, and it will start to resonate," he told her, flashing his sister a smile. "We might need the Champion's Song to restore Nebby later, but for now, we just need to open this portal. You, too, Kahili. Play the Sun Flute!"

"Okay!" Bonnie insisted. She raised the flute upward, just as she had the Sun Flute earlier, and began to blow into it. Kahili, likewise, took the Sun Flute from Bonnie's bag and began to blow into it. Musicians, they were not, but for that moment, it didn't matter. A note came out of it, crisp and clear, like the nighttime dew on softly swaying leaves, resonating with that of a morning breath of fresh air. It echoed around the lake, the ruins still glowing from their harmonious sound. The dark portal froze a moment, stopping its constant fluctuation, like it was listening. The knocking stopped, too. That only drew their attention to it, watching as Bonnie and Kahili's simple notes serenaded it. Then they saw a small path of blue amidst the black, opening up, like the bars to a cage were being forcibly wrenched apart. The Ultra Space, or that particular locked pocket, was opening up, reacting to the sound of the frequency in the same way that Clemont had predicted so long ago.

"Yes!" he cried, clenching his fists. He faced his sister. "Bonnie, Kahili, keep playing that note! Don't give up!"

"Mm!" Bonnie indicated, humming out for just a second before she went back to playing the note. Rotom floated in front of her, its screen showing the tuned note to indicate she was playing right. The ruins almost seemed to have their own humming as a result. It was a like a fine-tuned symphony, and the bars were drawn wide, opening the way to the pocket of space, that singular wormhole. Y stepped closer to it.

"For now, it seems fine! Nothing's coming out yet, but we don't want to tarry," he snapped to Clemont. The inventor nodded.

"On it! Vikavolt, charge it up!" Clemont called. Vikavolt confirmed receipt of the command, and his body began to spark, running electricity into the crane. The inventor grabbed his remote-control panel and began pressing buttons. The crane began to whir, every part moving perfectly. "All right! We'll save the future now thanks to science!"

"Pretty amazing!" Kahili cried out, dropping the note for just a second to speak, and Clemont pressed another button. The crane swung directly over the portal and then dropped into it, through the pried-open bars and snaking into its dark confines. They only had one shot at this, and they had to make it quick. The camera was activated, though it seemed shaky, as if something was ultimately interfering with it. The lemon blond bit at his tongue and still navigated the claw forward. It felt strange, like there were bubbles and pockets of space which could suck them all up in an instant.

"Pew! Pew!" The familiar cry echoed up, even if it sounded higher-pitched, almost female in nature. Whatever it was, it gave Clemont the push of determination he needed, and he began to move the crane quicker. The camera feed was cutting in and out, only offering quick glimpses of the space beyond. However, it got so bad that he eventually clicked a button to turn the camera off. This was something he had to do by sense alone.

The ground shuddered, Y's eyes going wide as he whipped around to his Hydreigon. Said Brutal Pokémon angled two of its heads towards the portal, just in case. Clemont shut his eyes as the ruins trembled once more, like the very air was trying to be torn apart in the Cosmog's bid for freedom.  _Come on…just a little further…_

"Hydreigon, Dragon Pulse, but careful!" Y called. Hydreigon fired into the portal and Clemont could feel his chain rattling from the force on either side of it. He didn't dare to open his eyes, hearing Bonnie sustaining the note, though obviously starting to tire.

"Bonnie can do it! Rotom may think Bonnie is a half pint, but right now Bonnie must!" Rotom called out, flailing its arms as it maintained the tuning note for Bonnie. Dedenne and Squishy were cheering her on, while Kahili helped to stop her from collapsing, all while easily playing her own note.

"Vik! Vikaaaa!" Vikavolt called out, encouraging their entire group as everything began to shudder. The Stag Beetle Pokémon's own body further increased its electrical output. Clemont couldn't feel it exactly, but he definitely felt the Dragon Pulse impacting with something. His crane started to creak and groan.

"Come on Crane Grabber, hold on just a little more!" Clemont screamed, his eyes snapping open. Something twinged in his brain, telling him it was time to grab the Cosmog. His finger plunged down, sweat flying off his brow, and he pressed the button. More creaking, but Clemont could see the status of his crane on the screen saying that it had secured the one they were after. "Now, pull it up!"

"Dark Pulse!" Y shouted. Clemont ignored the man's defensive tactics, pressing on with the chain retracting. He stepped forward, making sure it was definitely pulling up. The shaking wasn't ceasing around the ruins, and his apparatus was shaking right along with it.

"Keep going, Bonnie! Kahili! Vikavolt! We're almost there!" he yelled out, straining to make himself heard over everything. His heart was pounding against his chest rapidly, threatening to burst out. Hydreigon's main head sent the swirling dark beam into the portal, clearly making sure to avoid the crane. Not that it did much. Just as his screen read that the device was about to retract completely out of the portal, there was another huge tremor. The crane rattled and then suddenly broke to pieces. Not even hesitating, Clemont lunged forward and managed to grab on to the chain that was falling. "I've got you…"

"Clemont!" Y shouted, leaving Hydreigon to its own devices as he grabbed the inventor around the center of his body. The portal, having his hand partially inside, felt foreign to the touch for sure, gripping him, wanting to both pull him in and spit him out. If he could describe it the best, it really  _was_  like a twisting of realities. "Come on!"

"Yaaaargh!" Clemont screamed, wrenching his body out and carrying the last of the crane claw out with him. It flew into the air, and clasped in it, the blond could see a Cosmog, flipping through the air. Despite falling over, he made sure to spring to his feet and get underneath it in time to catch it. Bonnie's song stopped, and she nearly collapsed to her knees, with Kahili ceasing right after. There was a small, nearly unnoticeable hairline fracture near the edge of the Moon Flute, but it had held, and would continue to with no problems. "We've got you. Don't worry."

"Pew! Pew!" she cried out, sounding both grateful and frightened as Clemont leaned over her, sweat dripping on to his glasses. The remainder of his invention broke, tumbling into the abyss that had been pulling it in. However, the portal wasn't closing, even though Bonnie had stopped playing. This was something Y and Kahili were just as well aware of, the former standing and pushing Clemont away.

"I should have expected this," the man commented, a snarl on his face as he did so. "It's too close to the Day of Stars, and we went knocking, just like before, in the same way but with more power."

"Lusamine must know what we're up to, then!" Kahili shouted. The wind around them started howling as Clemont held the little Cosmog tighter to his body. Vikavolt flittered over to Bonnie, supporting her while Rotom seemed to read her temperature.

"I'm fine! No touching!" she snapped, slapping the Pokédex away. Clemont turned his body to the portal, holding in place for all of a second as the wind howled. Then the wind quieted, leaving a complete void of sound.

_FWOOOOSH!_  Like a sudden explosion, darkness began to erupt from the portal and Clemont stepped back, right up against Bonnie as his face scrunched and turned itself upwards. In the sky, the overlapped stars were pulsing so rapidly it almost made him sick to look at it. Yet it wasn't just darkness, but other shapes coming with it.

_They know…It knows…_ Clemont almost gasped, looking to the frightened puffball that was in his arms. She looked up at him pleadingly.  _It has sent its presence that has guarded this space…and its envoy…all to stop me from reuniting._

"What do you mean by that?" Clemont asked, but the little Cosmog could not answer him. He grit his teeth and saw a bright explosion of light, Skarmory appearing from Kahili's pokeball. Seconds later, the woman had tossed the Sun Flute over to Bonnie, who caught it, and shoved it back inside her bag with the Moon Flute. The instruction was obvious enough, really, leaving absolutely no time for debate. She still felt the need to shout it out, however.

"Get moving! Both of you! We'll hold the portal here, but the more wormholes that open, the harder this will become!" Kahili shouted from the intense howling. Clemont nodded, and opened his pack to place the Cosmog inside.

"Please, be more well-behaved than your friend, until we get to the Altar, okay?" Clemont said to the little one, and he closed his bag tightly. Squishy and Bluey bounced back up, right inside Bonnie's bag as Vikavolt took to air, Rotom attaching itself to him. Meanwhile, Clemont walked forward, grabbing ahold of Bonnie as Skarmory came close. "Come on, Bonnie! Time to f-fly!"

"Right!" Bonnie said, allowing Clemont to wrap his arms around his sister. Skarmory grabbed on to his back and lifted upwards, surprisingly holding the both of them with relative ease. With a flap of its metallic wings, the Armor Bird Pokémon blasted upwards into the air. Kahili and Y began to shrink slightly as they pulled away from the lake.

"Kahili! Y! Both of you, be safe!" Clemont yelled to them, while Bonnie held fast to his arm. Kahili turned her head, smirking at him. Y didn't, but he did speak.

"Save the worry for yourself," he called, throwing a hand out and displaying a Z-Ring on his wrist, something which he had to have been hiding the whole time. It was brimming with black energy as Hydreigon began firing Dragon Pulses into the gushing portal, only pushing back the black tendrils a little. "We'll hold as many off as we can here, but for now, get to where you need to. Make sure yourselves and Serena come back safe!"

"We will!" Bonnie shouted, and Skarmory lifted off with a screech, towards the line of stars and away from the darkness. Not that it was any brighter  _away_  from the blackened portal, given the lack of stars dotting the skies. A sudden blast of wind came from the portal, driving them off-kilter. Vikavolt seemed fine, but with the weight Skarmory was carrying, it tipped just a little. "You gotta hold on, Skarmory! We gotta make it to Poni Island!"

"Skar!" it screeched out, taking confidence from Bonnie. Another blast of wind came from the portal, though it happened to be angled well enough that Skarmory was pushed forward, out over the ocean, or, rather, in that direction.

_Buzzzzzzz!_  Clemont felt himself tense, head whipping backwards as he saw a powerful looking creature flying from the lake, looking angry and red in color. It wasn't alone, either. Other creatures, the likes of which he had only seen in the news reports from before, were sailing after them. It made him worried that there were simply too many for Kahili and Y to hold off. Though, there was a shining light from the lake, showing that Y was likely using a Z-Move.

"Vikavolt, Charge Beam! Hold them off!" Clemont shouted. Skarmory continued flying forward, while Vikavolt spun back around, the orb of crackling lightning forming between its mandibles, and then firing off in a sweeping motion. The electrified beam collided with the big red one, stunning it, though another one, looking like a whirling sharp blade, easily circumvented it. "Bug Buzz! Anything we can do to slow them down!"

"Vikaaaa!" Vikavolt screeched out. Clemont didn't bother with covering his own ears, not affected by the sudden cry and red waves that were radiating out from Vikavolt's figure. The beasts that were pursuing them seemed to hold up at that, the waves of noise evidently unavoidable, even for them. Clemont just tried to keep holding on to Skarmory, knowing that a drop would mean a very large plunge into the ocean below.

_Kuweeeeee!_  The sudden whirring cry of one of the beasts caught Clemont off guard, as it spun right out of the way of the Bug Buzz and began aiming for them. More specifically, it seemed to be pursuing the Cosmog in his bag.

"Evasive maneuvers!" Clemont yelled out. Skarmory gave another sharp cry and then shot off, picking up a slight burst of speed. The one going after them didn't give up, however. It was slicing through the air, making the inventor feel like that alone was tearing through dimensions. Clemont's eyes caught sight of the stars, just mere moments away from becoming one. In the darkness, they could also see Poni Island approaching, wondering if the others had gotten there already.

"There's more of them!" Bonnie shrieked out. Skarmory opened its beak and fired out a lustrous cannon that seared at the air. It didn't seem to have done much good, though it was possible that someone had seen them, at least.

"Charizard, Flamethrower!" yelled the stern and familiar voice of Kiawe. It gave Clemont a chance for some hope at the loud roar piercing the air. Flames rocketed through it, colliding with the blade that was pursuing them. It was knocked off course, but only for a moment.

"Stubborn things…Honchkrow, Dark Pulse! Don't get close to that one!" Gladion's shout came forth. Finally, the orange, draconic Pokémon pulled into view, Kiawe and Gladion astride the Charizard that was sending its flames out. It seemed like it was keeping them in a ring, right as Vikavolt caught back up with them. "They're all coming from Ula'ula, it seems. What happened?"

"We managed to get the other Cosmog, but the portal stayed open. The thought was that it's so close to the Day of Stars that its celestial energy is keeping it open," Clemont confirmed for the boy. Gladion nodded, while Kiawe seemed to remain focused on getting them through the air to Poni Island.

"Guess good old mom finally figured it out. At least keeping her distracted long enough seems to have worked that it wasn't worse," the boy sighed out, flicking his hair. Kiawe continued to say nothing. There was more loud screeching, and it seemed almost like the Ultra Beasts from Ula'ula were almost upon them. "I can only imagine what it will look like when-"

"Skarmory, look out!" Bonnie screamed. Clemont looked up, just in time for a Flash Cannon, more powerful than anything Clemont had seen before, came ripping through the sky and consumed Skarmory. With a painful cry, it let go of Clemont, who suddenly reacted, wanting to grab back on. Bonnie tumbled away.

"No, Bonnie!" Clemont yelled for his sister, turning around in the air, in the hopes of grabbing on to her once more. His hands were flailing, as were hers, plummeting swiftly towards the ocean. Charizard and Vikavolt's bodies angled towards the both of them, looking to grab them, though they had to break away as another Flash Cannon fired through the air. Skarmory was smoking, spiraling downward towards the ocean near the coast of Poni Island.

_Fear not! We shall aid thee!_  Clemont blinked at the sound of the horribly familiar voice. He looked to Bonnie's swiftly falling body, and noticed both Squishy and Bluey springing out of her bag. Bonnie tried to grab them, only managing to hold on to Dedenne in the process. They seemed to float upwards, surrounding themselves in a green sphere that burst with light. Things seemed to suddenly move in slow-motion.  _Thou shan't hurt the humans!_

All Clemont knew was that he was falling, watching as a huge multitude of green lights streaked in towards the two forms of Zygarde, bombarding them with such speed and ferocity that it was like a tremendous light show. He kept watching, almost forgetting from the sight the fact that he was falling. Then his eyes widened greater as a form that he had only seen once before emerged from within, displaying a long black tail, thick black arms and eyes that glowed with power.

"Squishy!" Bonnie shouted happily. The combined form of Zygarde said nothing, but it shot downwards, nabbing Bonnie in one go before soaring upwards to grab Clemont. He almost felt like throwing up from that alone, but held it in.

_We shall fight! Dragon Pulse!_  The two voices cried together. Keeping a hold on the two of them with one arm, Zygarde raised its other arm and fired out in front of the path to Poni Island. If Clemont hadn't been convinced of the Pokémon's great power before, he certainly was now. The multi-headed dragon blasted out, jaws snapping powerfully and angrily as they all soared forward into the beasts that had managed to get ahead of them. They screeched, set ablaze by the powerful explosion that sent the beasts dropping, flickering in and out of their reality.  _Keep up, humans!_

"Uh…sure…" Kiawe said with a hanging jaw, almost flabbergasted. Having Kiawe's confirmation, Zygarde was surrounded by a white aura and shot forward quickly. They were truly making great time now, moving much faster than before. More screeching and squealing filled Clemont's ears, and he saw that the Ultra Beasts were very much on their tails. One of them was moving so fast, it looked like it was leaping across air.

"Squishy, behind us!" Bonnie was yelling. Clemont wasn't sure whether that was a good thing, considering that Zygarde was occupied for the moment, and could barely take its eyes off the sight of the air ahead of them. Clemont peered in the distance, swearing he could see the familiar Meowth-shaped balloon taking off, Hau's Raichu floating outside of it.

"Mist Ball, Latias!" came another shout. None of them needed to see the person to know who was calling it. They didn't even need to see the attack; just hearing the name was enough. Nevertheless, the impact was most keenly felt. The large ball of mist slammed into the pursuing Ultra Beasts, exploding in a powerful haze all around them as Latias burst through the mist. Ash and Serena were sitting atop her, Pikachu at the head and Greninja standing on the back, looking unfettered, even at her intense speeds.

"Everything work, Clemont?" Serena yelled over to him. He nodded. The altar was approaching in the distance. "Good! Then we're finally ready to fight back!"

"Don't count us out!" Hau's voice yelled. Clemont grinned. Their combined forces were fully catching up with one another now, Lillie waving to them from the interior of Team Rocket's balloon. Ash's gaze was narrowed seriously as the sky suddenly began to lighten with a pale glow. It felt rather ominous to Clemont.

"I have Nebby. You have the other Cosmog?" Lillie called. As if on command, and just like her counterpart, the other Cosmog popped out of the bag in greeting. Nebby, naturally, didn't respond at all.

"We've got both of the flutes, too!" Bonnie cheered out, though she didn't display either artifact.

"Clemont, what about Kahili? And Y?" Ash asked. The inventor wasn't sure how to answer. He knew that the pair could definitely handle themselves, but just the two of them against a whole army of Ultra Beasts was daunting to anyone, no matter how one looked at it. Ash hung his head a moment, but snapped it back up with his usual look of completely fierce determination. He was going to believe in them, so Clemont chose to as well. "They'll be fine, then! Everyone! It's time!"

_Kauuuuuuuuu!_

_Lelelelelelele!_

_Burururururu!_

_Fiiiiiiiii!_

The cries split the air, making everyone look to the air in front of them, eyes widening at what began to occur.

"It's…our guardian deities…" Kiawe gasped out, as if in awe of the sight that was suddenly manifesting itself before all of them. Clemont had to whip his head around wildly to get a good glimpse of each and every one of them. Like little lights, soaring through the air, each one of the Tapus soared forth. Electricity crackled around the form of Tapu Koko. Tapu Lele was surrounded by a mystical aura. Tapu Bulu seemed to have strong vines extending from it, while Tapu Fini was enclosed by water. The remaining Ultra Beasts that were pursuing their little group to the altar suddenly began to fall as the lights slammed into them. Purple streaks and shocks shot out, causing them to plummet to the ground. "They're going to war."

"So are we," Gladion said seriously. He craned his head back, looking towards Ash and Serena, who were still catching up to Zygarde's slipstream. "Ash, did you get a crystal from Tapu Koko? And you from Tapu Lele, Serena?"

"We did," the couple answered, not wasting their words on things. Lillie seemed to cry out from the balloon, just as they drew close enough so that she was now fully visible. She was holding her Z-Ring out, glimmering with pale yellow light. The Tapus all formed front, like a vanguard. It was the surest sign of what was about to befall the region. Serena was speaking. "No idea what they're for, but if the Tapus wanted us to have them, it's for a reason, right?"

"Let's just keep you twerps alive long enough to figure out what that reason is," James called out. "Crabrawler, Inkay, get ready for some battle!"

"Squishy, we're counting on you! You, too, Bluey!" Bonnie insisted. Zygarde nodded its head, but said nothing as their entire force sailed forward, preceded by the guardian deities of Alola. They were almost upon the altar now.

_Vwooooom! Vwooooom!_

Zygarde suddenly pulled to a stop, as did all of the others. Dedenne chattered nervously, diving into Bonnie's bag again as he held his ears. The reasoning was obvious. Clemont looked up, teeth gritting. The stars had, at last, aligned.

"R-r-r-rotom must inform you all that it is midnight!" Rotom called out fearfully from atop Vikavolt. They all glanced around at each other, swallowing.

_VWOOOOOOOM!_  The sound was so horrible, that Clemont almost felt like his very body would be snapped in two just from hearing it. Yet it wasn't at all. Instead, something else split open. As the bright light from the eclipsed stars poured forth, many patches of the sky, and on the ground, began to ripple and shake, until, at last, the thrumming stopped.

Then the sky broke open.

The portals cracked themselves wide, just as the one had in Heahea City; their world and the Ultra Space were connected. From within each of them, numerous shapes stirred, and then came erupting out of them as the invasion started…no…This was more than just an invasion. This was simply the battle for humanity and Pokémon alike. At long last, the Day of Stars was here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: The climax has begun! This may have felt like some setup still, but with that bit of action thrown in there, it certainly can't be all setup. The battle is only just getting started though, now that the wormholes are opening up and hell in the form of Ultra Beasts is about to rain upon the world. How will it go? You'll find out.
> 
> I hope you'll all enjoy the finale to this grand journey. But in the meantime, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	25. A Song

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Continuing further with the climax! I tried to put in all the characters I could, but sadly some always slip through the cracks in these big scenes. Still, I hope it's enjoyable. Chapter 25 time!

Chapter 25

A Song

Ash's eyes were wide with horror. He could feel Serena's fingernails gripping into his biceps. Every single one of their envoy was staring at the sky, stopped in their movement. It felt like it was a single light, bisecting the entire world, heralding the merging of worlds or something like that. He was never the smartest when it came to understanding that stuff, but he did know one thing: the situation was about to get a lot worse.

"They're all over…" Serena whispered. Ash reached up, putting a hand on hers, giving her the encouragement that, perhaps, she didn't need. Nevertheless, he gave it to her. Pikachu's cheeks sparked angrily. He wasn't the only one reacting negatively to what was going on. Greninja seemed to have some issues, as well, along with Kiawe's Charizard. In the short distance ahead of them, Pipi also looked on edge. Ash's eyes kept widening at the thought that was now assailing his head, bringing him back to that one battle. If but a single Ultra Beast had caused a stampede through Heahea City…what would an army of them do?

"This is  _not_  good," Gladion spat out. They had hoped to get to the altar before all this, Ash realized with a twitching lip, but it was clear they had grossly miscalculated. Though the fact that Lusamine didn't seem to cotton on to their plan until it was far too late was a boon in and of itself, something that Ash was highly grateful for. Not that it mattered in the heat of the moment.

In the night sky, that inky blackness was splitting apart, opening with such loud and shuddering cracks, it was as though the entire world was being beaten with a whip by the presence of this other place. The air itself was quivering, like it was breaking down from the mere existence of the wormholes that were there. It was, quite honestly, one of the most frightening experiences that Ash had ever had. Perhaps he was holding Serena's hand more for himself than her. She squeezed back, indicating that she had him covered.

The wormholes, now dotting so many spaces over Alola, including the sky over the altar, were starting to squirm in the creepiest of fashions, something beginning to stir deep within them…no,  _multiple_  somethings. Latias shuddered underneath him, even her immense strength making her fearful of the things coming through the portal. For that second, each of their altar assault party was gripped with fear; fear that they had failed. Then, the first group of assailants came floating out of the portals.

"A Nihilego!" Lillie gasped out, pointing towards the group of Pokémon that seemed to be leading the Ultra Beasts, each one floating out with a menacing aura. It was certainly more than familiar to Ash, its creepy tentacles swaying back and forth as it approached, silently stalking forward. There was more than one and, indeed, more than just  _that_  particular species now littering the skies over Alola, each looking odd and deadly at the same time. Ash's body was now giving an involuntary shudder, one that he couldn't control.

"Gah…" he suddenly gasped, feeling his brain going hazy. He knew he wasn't alone, not from the way Serena was grabbing at him, trying to get him to turn around towards her. He wanted to, as well. The switch in his brain that was telling him this wasn't the time for stuff like that was flipping off completely. "Se…rena…"

"Ash…" she gasped out, like she was trying to keep control over her own mind.

"Snap…out of it…" Gladion said, gripping at his own head. Kiawe was starting to stand on his Charizard, and it looked like Meowth's claws were extending, advancing on Wobbuffet while Jessie grabbed James by the collar, pushing a hand against the balloon. Ash couldn't stop himself, and the Ultra Beasts slowly floated forward, as though they were easy prey that would do little but destroy themselves on their own whims, not needing any interference. Ash was now looking at Serena, but he didn't really see her there. She was just some sort of object of desire now, not an actual person.

"Pikapi!" Ash felt himself slapped across the face by Pikachu's tail. He blinked, realizing Serena was there, and that his hand was on her bare shoulder, having never realized he'd even placed it there, or moved her shirt down whatsoever.

"The…toxins…" Serena practically panted out, as lewd as it suddenly seemed to Ash. She was trailing her hands down his arms and Ash blinked. Of course! They had all been warned about it, and yet…

"Latias!" Ash yelled desperately, plunging into his pocket and pulling out the flute, his father's keystone now sitting there and glistening. He had never done it before, but there was no time like the present. "Mega Evolve!"

"Kuuuuu!" Latias cried and even as Ash and the others rested upon her, the Latiasite reacted. It was such a surprising rush, that Ash wasn't sure if he could even control it. However, she turned her head to him, nodding, like she was reassuring him that everything was okay. The bond that the two of them held to his father would be more than enough. Her body began to change, wings shortening and claws elongating. Ash pitched forward, gripping at her neck while Serena seemed to snap out of the fog in her mind, as well, holding fast to him.

"Everything better now?" he asked with a slight chuckle. Serena was shaking her head, looking rather embarrassed at their almost public display. Clearly, the lack of inhibitions affecting their hormones was  _not_  something she'd be forgetting anytime soon.

"Still feels a bit foggy…did we really just…?"

"Let's not think about it. Latias, Dragon Breath!" Ash called out. Latias' body finished transforming into her Mega Evolved form, rearing back. Zygarde, still holding tight to Clemont and Bonnie, moved out of the way as the green flame shot out from Latias' mouth. Despite the force that traveled forwards, Latias didn't move at all, though Ash had to hold on to his hat. The green flames rocketed forward and made contact with the first of the Nihilego. It didn't stop there, bursting through all of them and exploding into green embers.

"Uh…what am I doing?" Kiawe asked, stopping his dancing atop his companion. Gladion shook his head and pulled the captain straight down.

"Making an utter fool of yourself," the blond snapped. "Everyone better now?"

"I feel like I've been swimming…wait, where did all my malasadas go? I was saving them in case we needed to refuel!" Hau exclaimed from Team Rocket's balloon, each of them recovering, as well, with Wobbuffet hugging Jessie, who was on top of James as Meowth attacked all three of them. Lillie was the only one that seemed okay, though her hand  _was_  on Hau's chest.

Ash decided to stop paying attention to all of that and looked to the writhing Nihilego, dropping towards the ground. He patted Latias, grateful to have her assistance in the battle. He couldn't believe that he'd forgotten about the neurotoxin. Adjusting his hat on his head, he pointed forward again. "This is it! Any Nihilego you see, get rid of it! Right now, we have one goal: get to that altar!"

_We are on it! Extreme Speed!_  Zygarde cried out, using far different vernacular than Ash was used to. Not that he let it distract him. Zygarde was wreathed in a bright white light, and fired off, Clemont and Bonnie screaming with it (and neither in the same way). Kiawe's Charizard roared loudly.

"Those creatures…they won't get the best of me again! Charizard, let's destroy those who would defile these islands!" Kiawe snapped his reins and Charizard rushed in, wings glowing a bright white. Gladion was clearly shouting at him to focus on the Nihilego.

"We should, too! Got that, Team Rocket?" Ash yelled out. The trio stopped whatever they were doing and saluted. Meowth scrambled for his own remote-control button, pressing upon it as rockets appeared from their balloon.

"Hold on, guys! We gonna get dere real quick! Rockets, activated!" That was no lie, as Meowth once more pressed the button and the rockets blasted the balloon forward at high speed. Wobbuffet took point proudly, while most of Jessie and James' Pokémon remained at the sides, like a vanguard with the purpose of reflecting attacks. Ash watched them all go, and Serena patted his shoulder, much sweeter than she had been mere moments ago.

"Let's go! Giga Impact! Aim for any Nihilego and make us a path!" Ash called. Latias cried out as Pikachu hopped into Ash's arms. Then her body became surrounded with swirling purple and yellow light. The light remained there, stationary, for just a moment. Then she fired through, traveling even faster than all those which had gone ahead of them. An Ultra Beast, looking like a strange kind of cannon, moved to block their path, but nothing would stop them. "Greninja, Water Shuriken!"

"Nin-ja!" Greninja yelled, remaining firmly stuck in place as he gripped his watery blades, from his sides, and tossed them at the Ultra Beast. It forced it to stagger, and Latias slammed into it. She didn't stop, continuing through the gathering army of Ultra Beasts, especially the ones that seemed to all be streaming after Clemont and Lillie. Actually, Ash noticed that those two were where most of the creatures were going. Ash had a fairly solid idea of why. It suddenly became imperative for them to catch up.

"Serena, can Primarina remain in the air for a while with Aqua Jet?" Ash asked of his girlfriend. She seemed to raise her eyebrows, but quickly got the whole idea and she grabbed for a pokeball. Ash did, too, and they tossed them upwards together. Toucannon and Primarina emerged in the air, Serena's Pokémon instantly getting the idea to use her Aqua Jet due to her position. "All right, help us break through! Hyper Voice!"

"Toucaaaaaah!" Toucannon screeched out, sending the red soundwaves out. The beasts pursuing Clemont and the others halted, thankfully affected by the dangerous soundwaves. That mere moment of pause was enough for Latias to catch up rapidly, zooming past and through them with her Giga Impact. It took a moment, but the shockwave from the attack soon rippled through the Ultra Beasts behind them and caused them to drop, spiraling towards the ground and sea below. The light around Latias faded, though she still kept up her speed and stamina.

"I can see the altar! We're almost there, Squishy!" Bonnie yelled out. Ash peered forward, realizing that she was right. Of course, what Bonnie  _failed_  to recognize (though Ash and some of the others did), were the intense sounds of battle that were coming from within the site of the shield that surrounded the Altar of the Sunne. More than that, countless Ultra Beasts were swarming, attacking the helicopters that were stationed overhead.

"Everyone, stay focused!" Gladion yelled out, his Honchkrow keeping close. The blond pointed forward, and Honchkrow nodded, sending a Dark Pulse out towards one of the flitting Ultra Beasts that was running on the air, in order to get its attention. Not that it needed the help, since some of the beasts pouring from the portals in the air were turning towards Clemont and Lillie.

"Clemont! Lillie! You guys need to stick closer to us!" Ash yelled out. "They want to stop us from reaching the altar, and taking both Cosmog and Nebby is the way to do that! Latias, Psyshock! Toucannon, Flame Charge!"

"We're on it, Ash! Vikavolt, Spark!" The flying Pokémon all acted right away, joined by Pipi, who was sending a Thunderbolt raging outward for the cluster of beasts making their way towards them. The attacks slammed upon a singular beast, managing to hit it and fell it with sparks in the air. However, there were a lot more than that left.

"I don't think we'll be able to get in, twerp!" Jessie shouted out, looking quite ticked off. "You twerps are the brilliant ones, so come up with a strategy-hey! No! Get away! Gourgeist, Leech Seed!"

"Primarina, go!" Serena yelled, her free hand flying out. Gourgeist fired her seeds, entangling one of the large, red-colored beasts, just before Primarina slammed into it with Aqua Jet and landed on the balloon to regain her balance.

"They just won't end, man!" Hau complained a little. "How the heck are we gonna get through all of them before they destroy us? Ah! Pipi, protect the balloon! Use Electric Terrain!"

"Rairairai!" Pipi called up, soaring out towards one of the beasts looking to hit the large Meowth balloon, electric energy charging the air around them, something Pikachu and Vikavolt seemed to appreciate. Not that it cleared away the glut of enemies that was blocking their progress.

_Kauuuuuuu!_  Ash watched as Tapu Koko suddenly came flying through, purple streaks of lightning traveling out from its body. It zipped through, hitting each of the Ultra Beasts one by one, with more speed than even Latias had been showing. Her own Psyshock landed on some of the stragglers directly in front. No matter the attack that had done it, those beasts began to fall, flickering in and out like their brethren before, but there were definitely plenty more where they'd come from.

"Ash, no matter what we do, there are still too many in the way," Serena told him seriously. He frowned, knowing she was right. The Tapus were all acting, but there were only four of them, and only Tapu Koko seemed to be covering their own quadrant. As strong as it was, the amount of portals and Ultra Beasts that had appeared were far more than Ash had imagined. More, even, than any of them had imagined, for that matter.

"The whole Ultra Space has probably emptied," Clemont noted. "I'm also starting to suspect that since they fade upon defeat, they simply get brought back to it and revived to return to the fight."

"Then we'll keep fighting without making progress? !" Lillie asked. One of the beasts flitting through the air drew close and Komala swung around with a green-colored chunk of wood to knock it away, on Lillie's order. "We just need to make a push to break through!"

"Allow us!" Ash snapped his gaze up as he noticed an all too familiar face floating down, tinged with blue, gracefully approaching. Next to her was her Pokémon, the stunning Gardevoir. Ash grinned at the appearance of Diantha, and even more than that, that  _all_  of the Champions seemed to be there but Alder (which made sense when Ash realized Bouffalant was hardly suited for air battling). "We Champions have been planning for this moment!"

"We'll carve you a path!" Steven called, taking out his stickpin. He and Diantha grinned at each other, touching to their keystones and their Pokémon began to transform. Neither Cynthia nor Lance bothered with that, but both of them wore the looks of confidence that said they didn't need Mega Evolution.

"Go, Ash! Garchomp, Dragon Rush!" Cynthia ordered, leaping off her Pokémon and being supported by Gardevoir's Psychic. It took immense control to leave them all floating there while also charging a Moonblast.

"We've got it! Latias, we're heading down!" Ash called out, pointing down towards the altar. Even a simple glimpse told him just how packed with their enemy the path was, but he wasn't about to run away. Nor, it seemed, were the others.

"Begin Rocket landing process!" Jessie and James yelled. Meowth and Wobbuffet worked together in seconds, and the balloon began to plummet, forcing them all to hold on. It moved so quickly that Ash noticed the Ultra Beasts were hardly reacting to their group, despite Nebby's presence, until they were well past. The only issue was how far off their intended landing site was from the actual top of the altar. Other than that, even from his height, Ash could see some of the combatants down below (looking like Dawn, Brock and Aria) moving to intercept them.

"You heard 'em, Squishy! Dragon Pulse and take us down!" Bonnie shouted, punching forward from her hold. One of the Ultra Beasts, the cutting one, wheeled right for them at her call. It didn't make it very far before Metagross' Flash Cannon impacted with it, slamming it into a stone face of Poni Island.

"Dragonite, Hyper Beam!" Lance roared from atop his Pokémon. "You four, stop dawdling! You have somewhere you need to be  _right now_!"

"Right, sorry! Latias, Mist Ball, and let's go!" Ash called out. Toucannon flapped close, planning to dive right along with Latias. Serena held a hand out, sending out a beam from her pokeball to return Primarina (who'd used another Aqua Jet into the air) before she could tire herself out. "Greninja, run support with Water Shuriken!"

"Charizard, you know what to do!" Kiawe yelled to his Pokémon. Both pairs drew even, Ash reaching over to bump fists with both Gladion and Kiawe, before their rides angled downward and shot forward to join with Zygarde in the mess of enemies. Just as they started to descend, there was an explosion. Ash looked back, seeing the four Champions back to back, their vicious attacks holding off the Ultra Beasts, all while being aided by Tapu Koko from the edges; the guardian deity was swiftly shocking some more Nihilego that were emerging from the portals.

Latias and Charizard opened their maws, just as they came even with Zygarde. All three began forming their powerful attacks and sent them straight downwards. One of the Ultra Beasts, the one that looked like a strange cannon of sorts, moved to intercept it, firing off its own Flash Cannon, though eerie in color. It slammed into the Flamethrower, cutting through it and forcing Kiawe and Gladion to roll to the side in order to avoid the strike. The Mist Ball and Dragon Pulse hit the target, though, colliding with it and sending it crashing straight through its comrades with little remorse.

"Toucannon, use Flame Charge, pick up speed!" Ash ordered as they continued to shoot forward. Charizard returned to them, though it wasn't thinning the ranks standing between them and the altar, at any rate. In fact, just about the only thing different now was that they could actually  _see_  the altar and some of its details, rather than just a mess of Ultra Beasts.

_Bzzzzzzzz!_  The horrible buzzing sound alerted Ash to the red Ultra Beasts coming in a pincer attack from the sides. They weren't as fast as some of their counterparts, but the sheer aura of power coming from them was enough to convince Ash of the threat that they were.

"Charizard, Flamethrower!"

"Chespie, Toxic!" A mighty roar split the air, but Latias didn't stop moving. Kiawe turned in the direction of the incoming Charizard, his eyes widening with a rather impressed look. Alain's Charizard, Mega Evolved with his usual blue flames, came rocketing forward, gushing blue flames into the buzzing beast before them. At the same time, from astride its back, Chespie fired off purple streams of liquid that hit one on the other side. "Keep moving, Serena! We'll take care of things here!"

"Thanks!" Ash yelled. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt! Combine it with Psyshock!" Pikachu sparked, the electricity brimming around his body while he leapt to Latias' head. Then he sent the lightning out, while Latias sent the purple streaks. The attacks combined together and slammed into another one of the cannons.

"Nihilego, straight ahead!" Gladion snapped loudly. Ash's gaze narrowed, teeth gritting as he saw the beasts with tentacles floating up like ethereal jellyfish.  _Deadly jellyfish…_ Ash reasoned. Gladion's Honchkrow flew straight at it while Zygarde began to pick up speed. Vikavolt joined in, firing a beam of charged electricity right into the pack of Nihilego. It wasn't enough, and Ash could already start feeling his mind slipping away into the haze. One of the Nihilego fired off the destructive red Power Gem beams that Ash had faced in Heahea. They struck both Vikavolt and Honchkrow. While the former shook it off, Honchkrow took it poorly, and Gladion recalled him.

Another one fired off the same kind of attack, aiming it once more for Vikavolt, and Charizard, as well. Ash patted Latias, indicating for her to strike with a Dragon Breath. She opened her mouth and sent the green flames roaring out. It intercepted the attack aiming for Charizard, allowing it and its passengers to pass through safely. The same wasn't said for Vikavolt, forcing Zygarde to shoot forward, nailed into one of its wings by the attack meant for the Stag Beetle Pokémon. It began to spiral, glowing green, while Ryuki came screaming in on his Dragonite to finish the job, albeit not doing much. Regardless, he disappeared into another area of the sky right after, but Ash was more focused on the now falling Zygarde and his friends.

"VIKA!" Vikavolt screamed, shooting at almost supersonic speed to catch his trainer, as Clemont and Bonnie once more began to fall. Ash tried to give an order, but his head was just so  _foggy_.

"Psychic, Alakazam!" Ash recognized that voice. Knew it all too well, but couldn't place it with the fog. Then there was a loud, unearthly screeching and the fog cleared. He looked up to see Seamus floating with his Mega Alakazam, whirling the Nihilego around and sending them crashing downwards, where it seemed Sawyer was waiting with a Leaf Storm from his Mega Sceptile that exploded upon the beasts. "We'll take care of any more of those things. The battle's just as hectic on the ground, so save some of your strength!"

"R-right," Ash gasped out, shaking his head to fully remove the fog from his mind. He finally remembered what had happened, and he looked down to see Clemont and Bonnie falling, the green lights flying away from Zygarde as it turned back into the two exhausted forms of Squishy and Bluey. Bonnie caught them just before Clemont pushed her. She landed right on top of Vikavolt, but Clemont continued to plummet.

"Clemont! Rotom, go get him!" Bonnie screamed out. Rotom gave no hesitation, letting go of his Vikavolt transportation, finally, to zip through the air and stretch its stubby arms to grab Clemont's own arm. It halted the fall for maybe all of a second before Rotom was dragged down with him.

"Latias, let's go! We have to reach them!" Ash yelled to the Eon Pokémon. She cried out and shot downward, right for the floor that his friends had battled on, near the foot of the stairs to the Altar of the Sunne, before. He urged her on silently. She was the best shot of saving Clemont.  _Hurry…please…Clemont!_

_Kuweeeee!_  Ash grimaced. He looked back to Greninja, who ran a little along Latias and leapt off, grabbing his shuriken and tossing them forward at the wheeling blades. Toucannon joined in, shooting towards it with fire. Greninja also angled towards it and leapt upwards once his shuriken had hit, calling his white blade forth. They both struck on the Ultra Beast.

"Clemont!" Serena screamed, hoping they could reach their friend in time. Only it didn't look like they'd be able to. Ash reached forward, as if hoping to grab him from that distance. A shadow flitted through the air, suddenly vanishing in the night sky, before it grabbed hold of Clemont and swirled on to the ground, materializing as the very familiar form of Lionel's Mega Evolved Banette. The man nodded up at them from below, as Clemont caught his breath near the foot of the stairs. With him there was Gary, checking over to make sure he was okay as Electivire sent a Thunder through the air. The blond inventor looked up.

"You all go towards the altar as quickly as you can," he yelled up. "I'll join with Lillie and Hau and meet you there!"

"Sounds good! Greninja, stick with him!" Ash yelled to his faithful Pokémon. Greninja nodded, flipping downwards through the remaining distance to the ground, and landing nimbly near Clemont's side. In seconds, Meyer was running up to help defend his son with his Blaziken, May right alongside him. Ash looked around, trying to find where Lillie could possibly be at that moment when Serena pointed out, locating her. She, Team Rocket and Hau were pushing through some rather speedy moving Ultra Beasts that Ash could barely get a look at. They had closed ranks while Dawn attempted to hold them off from behind. In fact, that seemed to be the strategy of the day, with many others like Misty and Brock joining in with that very plan: the advance party moving forward while the others held off all of the Ultra Beasts.

The only problem was the moving forward part. Even with Hau's Incineroar now out on the field, combining explosive attacks with Pipi, the ultra-quick beast was avoiding everything he had to throw at it; it was a real testament to its speed. Lillie looked to be scanning everything, when she seemed to notice something that Ash saw as well: a troupe of Oricorio were moving towards them, alongside a Mega Evolved Absol and a Rhyperior.

"They'll be fine," Ash insisted to Serena, as Latias continued rocketing downwards. "Maka's there with them."

"And she'll do anything for that epic shot," Serena laughed out. Sure enough, the second he had looked back, Maka's film crew had trapped the troublesome Ultra Beast, yelling something about a supporting cast as Lillie's group moved on. Seeing Absol and Rhyperior attack the trapped group only clinched Ash's faith. Knowing they would be fine, Ash turned his attention back towards their incoming destination.

_Zizizizizizee!_  The new cry, unfamiliar from all of the other beasts that had attacked so far, pricked Ash's ears. But it affected none more so than Pikachu, who seemed to sense where the beast was, looking in its direction. Ash snapped his gaze to it, noticing that it was gangly and looking like it was made of electrical wires, indicated most sharply by the shining star at the top of its head that flickered with electricity. It also screamed to be beyond dangerous from its palpable aura.

"Evade, quickly!" Ash yelled out. Latias rolled to the side as the creature that was on the stairs suddenly sparked violently. The electricity, eerie in color, like an off-yellow or off-white, showered upwards, leaving them almost nowhere to run. Ash grit his teeth while even Pikachu seemed to suffer under the electricity. Latias and Charizard were battered by the shocks, each falling uncontrollably towards the stairs, now. The longer the attack continued, the weaker they felt.

"Stone Edge, Torterra! Then use Frenzy Plant and catch them." Pikachu looked back at Ash, who started to grin. They weren't finished from this beast yet. Stones flew out in a sharp and jagged fashion, cutting into the electric Ultra Beast and stopping its attack. Then the roots came ripping out of the stairs. Ash patted Latias.

"Take it from here," he whispered. She cooed, and Ash grabbed Serena and Pikachu, before leaping off of Latias. He wasn't alone, as Gladion had jumped off of Charizard, aiming for the flailing roots. Both boys caught hold of them and slid down, their feet hitting the stairs. "Thanks, Paul. Leave the rest to us."

"Yeah, whatever. Standby for battle," Paul smirked out as he sent another pokeball out in the form of Electivire. Said Pokémon slammed down on the Ultra Beast with a Brick Break, allowing the trio to run fiercely up the stairs. Serena and Gladion both called their own top Pokémon out, now, with Silvally snarling viciously. Kiawe and Charizard had taken off.

The ground began shuddering, pitching each of them forward. They caught on to each other, Gladion's knees hitting the steps. Ash looked back, seeing that Clemont and Rotom had, indeed, caught up with Lillie and the others at the base of the stairs. Bonnie had landed there, too, with Vikavolt having obviously followed his trainer, in order to land safely. Korrina and Lucario looked to be protecting their landing, too. But what caught Ash's attention most of all was…

"It's eroding…" Serena breathed out, a sense of frightened awe in her voice. That was the easiest way to describe it. Chunks of the canyon walls were breaking apart, disintegrating into dust, as was the altar, itself. Overhead, the Ultra Wormholes were pulsing and thrumming, with each and every pulse through the air, another piece of their world seemed to disappear.

"They really  _are_  trying to destroy our world," Gladion noted. "This many wormholes must have done something to reality, and now it's trying to tear itself apart, assimilate itself into the Ultra Space. Exactly what my mother wants, so she can create her perfect illusion."

"We won't let it!"

"Pika Pikachau!" Pikachu cried vehemently. Ash reached both of his hands out, leading for Serena and Gladion, both, to take them as he pulled them up. Then he stepped forward.

"It doesn't matter if the path is crumbling ahead!" he shouted. A chunk of stone seemed to fall right in their path, and he leapt over it, the others being carried with him. "It doesn't matter what's in the way! The only way you make your world happen is by working together and striving for it! If we all know who we are and our parts to play,  _nothing_  is impossible!"

_Guzzuzzuzzuzz!_  The deep growling interrupted him, but Ash wasn't about to stop. From above dropped a rather large and bulky Ultra Beast with a giant mouth. It was black all over, and from its mouth were two tendrils with claws on the end, snapping viciously.

"Out of our way!" Ash screamed, stopping a moment as he crossed his fists. He wasn't alone, Gladion and Serena doing the same right next to him. Their Z-Rings resonated and shone brightly. "This is our world! Get out! Pikachu, Breakneck Blitz!"

"Corkscrew Crash!"

"Inferno Overdrive!" The three moved in perfect harmony with each other, their arms uncrossing and beginning the movements for their Z-Moves. All three of their Pokémon burned with Z-Power, acting together, like a team. A month ago, it would have been near inconceivable, yet now…Pikachu's blast of cutting speed drove outwards, while Silvally charged straight towards the beast as a spinning drill and Braixen fired out a fireball so large that it exploded against the creature. Ash's eyes narrowed, hearing the pained cries of the creature, before it was followed by laughter. The beast was  _taunting_  them.

"Foul Play." The command was unexpected, as was the Persian that leapt forward to grab ahold of the Ultra Beast and bring it slamming down on to the stairs. Ash didn't bother waiting for the man that he knew had arrived, starting to run up the final stretch of the stairs to the altar. At the top, he could see some other familiar faces…or at least mannerisms. Serena had no problem calling the man out.

"Nanu, weren't you supposed to be at Po Town?" she called back. Ash looked back for just a second, but he could easily see the feral grin that was stretching the Kahuna's face. The man's eyes were lit with the fire of battle; one that needed no answer or explanation. He was a man here to battle, and nothing more. In fact, he didn't even address Serena's question, but just the monster before him.

"Come at me, beast. Give me a fight! One that I can remember for whatever years I have left!" Nanu smirked out and Persian leapt at it, delivering a brutal Dark Pulse right to the beast's face. It staggered, almost teetering over the edge. Ash and Gladion both chuckled, but continued running with Serena right next to them. The haze was coming forward again, more Nihilego no doubt encroaching upon their space. However, Ash kept running forward, determined to not stop and battle or anything else. After all, that was what their final line of defense was for in the first place.

"All right, boys! The others are helping out elsewhere, but we're gonna make sure they rescue the boss!" Plumeria was shouting, right at the top of the stairs. Ash led the charge forward, noticing that the others were gaining ground on them, nearing Nanu's titanic battle with the giant beast below, pieces of the stairs blown apart as a Power Gem cut straight down the Ultra Beast's middle. The raven-haired trainer didn't stop, and his foot hit the top step, running past Plumeria as the Skull grunts ringing the stage and tag teaming the Nihilego cheered. Her words reached him. "Keep your promise…bring him back to us."

"Of course," Ash spoke, and he continued his sprint towards the center of the altar, where he skidded to a stop and faced the stairs once more. The others were almost there, though the Nihilego were starting to encroach upon their space yet again. Their particular trio was far removed enough to be perfectly fine, but he wasn't sure he could say the same for Clemont and his own advancing group.

"Boys, get moving!" Plumeria shouted out to her group of Team Skull. "No one tackle a single beast in less than groups of three. Coordinate your attacks!"

"We on it, Big Sis! Cannonball, Gumshoos!" three of the grunts yelled together. Ash just watched with quirked eyebrows, as they all leapt off the edge of the altar with their partner Pokémon, slamming right on top of one of the Nihilego and sending it falling downward. The grunts rolled off, landing on the stairs and looking fine. It was a good distraction.

"How are they not affected by the toxin?" Serena almost laughed out, finding the whole thing rather humorous, clearly. More of the Skull grunts moved close to the edge, and one turned back with a grin.

"Yo, we ain't affected, cuz we totally already act without any inebriations."

"Bro, that's totally not the word!" said a female thug next to him. He looked at her in surprise, making Gladion facepalm. "It's like, inhalations or somethin'!"

"It's called get your asses moving! That goes for you twerps as well!"

"For the last time, that name is copyrighted by us!" Jessie yelled at the Team Skull Admin. Plumeria just rolled her eyes without caring at all. Team Rocket, as a whole, dropped the issue, clearly feeling now wasn't the time to squabble over who was allowed to call them twerps or not. Ash looked down to his Z-Ring and noticed it pulsing with light. So, too, were Serena and Gladion's. As Lillie and Hau led the charge of the remainder of their group, he could also see Lillie's glowing.

"Well, that's one part done!" Hau said, jumping up a little, while pumping his fists a bit as they slid into the center of the altar. It was good to see him positive, though his words indicated that he knew they were nowhere close to being done with all of this.

"Just a second longer, Nebby," Lillie said, she and Clemont both moving towards the center of the altar. Once they'd moved to the point between the two daises, they bent down, taking their bags off their shoulders and placing them on the ground. The two dug in and took out Nebby and the other Cosmog.

"Pew! Pew!" the Cosmog cried, looking upset at Nebby's motionless form. A rustling from Bonnie made Ash turn his head to see her taking out the flutes, including the repaired Moon Flute. They were glowing powerfully, and both Nebby and the other Cosmog were beginning to brim with that pulsing light.

"What now?" the lemon blonde asked. The altar shook once again, pieces near the edge breaking away from the destruction of reality. Some of the Skull grunts gasped and gripped on to whatever edge was left. Clemont looked the most worried at this, but he stood.

"We need to play the flutes. The Champions' Song," he told them all sternly. Ash folded his arms, trying to think of how to get them to play that. He remembered his own musical refrain, heard so long ago from Tapu Koko, having paid so little mind to it at the time…

"Serena, Gladion, Lillie, we need to call the Tapus here!" Ash said, like sudden realization was hitting him in that moment. No one argued the point, all four of them making sure to gather near the center. Clemont stepped back with Team Rocket, Hau and Bonnie, watching all the events precipitating around them. Ash breathed in, but wasn't entirely sure how to act on his suggestion. So, he just raised his Z-Ring into the air as it glowed. The others followed suit.

_Kauuuuuuu!_  came the shrill cry of Tapu Koko, piercing the air loudly. At this, Ash looked up, and from the four quadrants surrounding the altar, all four of the Tapus flitted through the sky, leaving destroyed Ultra Beasts in their wake as they drew near. Serena was the one to make the official request.

"Please give us the song! We've all heard the notes!" she yelled up to them as they circled overhead. Tapu Lele and Tapu Fini floated closer to them, eyes glistening while Tapu Koko and Tapu Bulu held the air safely.

_The flutes…_ Tapu Fini spoke in all of their heads. Ash turned to Bonnie, and the Sun Flute and Moon Flute both gravitated out of her hands and into the air, spinning through the air and shooting into Lillie's and Gladion's hands, respectively.  _Play them with our song._

_Sing them, with our song,_  Tapu Lele informed them. Ash swallowed, slightly nervous at being asked to sing.  _Your hearts will resonate._

"We'll do it!" Lillie said, turning to the dais with the symbol of the sun on it. Gladion looked a little apprehensive, but shrugged and made his way to the other dais. Ash and Serena just glanced at each other and remained where they were in the center. The sounds of battle still clashed through the air, yet they seemed to suddenly die down in the voice of the booming Tapu Bulu.

It sent a deep, low note quavering out, trembling through the air, like a monk that was chanting. It was soon joined by Tapu Koko's harmony, resonating through the area. Gladion blew into the flute, matching the tones of Tapu Bulu. Ash grimaced a moment but then began to hum loudly, Pikachu and Greninja watching him with support. His note mixed in with the harmony and the melody. He wasn't alone, Serena and Tapu Lele soon joining in. They were finally joined in by Tapu Fini guiding Lillie.

Bonnie and Hau seemed to clap, and though Ash felt nervous about singing, his voice must have done a passable job, because it soared into beautiful music. They evoked memories, nature and so many other things from the swirling ocean to the wind in the trees. Ash felt like the soaring sound of the flutes with all the different voices and the circling Tapus were creating images of all their purposes. Scenes of battle. Scenes of tender, loving care. Scenes of the growing life. Scenes of hope. Whatever assault the Ultra Beasts were attempting was failing, like a secondary barrier was formed around all of them on the altar.

A bright glow blasted upwards from behind Ash and he turned to see a column erupting from Nebby. At the same time, the other Cosmog was glowing, changing form to the same inert cocoon that Nebby was already in, like the song was safely speeding up its processes. At the same time, light exploded from her as well. The song soared beautifully, almost making them feel like they were dancing while standing still. It was as if they were completely safe from harm as everything spilled around them, including the tremendous sight just beyond the glowing light. A portal was opening, though nothing was coming out of this one. Then the light pulsed forth, sending shuddering waves out. Ash and Serena held to one another while Gladion and Lillie were nearly pushed off their respective daises. The Tapus stopped their song, no longer needed.

Clemont walked forward with all of the others and Plumeria turned her head. Then, just as the light seemed to reach its peak, it blasted out around them once more and Ash felt everything stop. Plumeria, the Skull grunts and all of the Ultra Beasts seemed to freeze in place. Only the Tapus and they, themselves, were able to move. The reason was soon made plain.

"Alola's legendaries…" Rotom commented. It began to move forward, but Bonnie yanked it from the air, eyes wide at the sight. Lillie took a step forward towards the two in the center. Ash felt his breath almost stalling in the sight of such majesty.

Two creatures were before them all, the blue light of evolution causing Gladion to drop the Moon Flute to the ground with his lips parted. Ash just stared at the sight. On one side, closest to Gladion, was a large bat, her wings spread wide. At the top of her body, as though enclosed by the dark wings, lined with gold, was her head. As Ash stared, it seemed as though stars were swirling inside the head, outlined by pink eyes. The sight was beyond majestic, and Ash shifted along to the creature next to her. This one was more familiar, having seen it before, during their first visit to the altar. The shining, gleaming lion practically lit up the night sky, even with such consuming darkness from the portals. Only now, it didn't look transparent, but completely in the flesh.

No one could say anything, especially as the two legendaries moved forward to touch their heads to one another. There was this calming, peaceful resonance between them, setting Ash's heart at ease. Lillie took another step forward.

_"It has been…so…so long,"_  the bat spoke in a feminine voice, almost sounding like she was crying.  _"We have been separated for too long."_

_"Yes, we have,"_  rumbled Nebby (or Ash assumed it was Nebby) deeply.  _"You seem surprisingly well for what you've gone through, Lunala."_

_"And you seem so happy, Solgaleo…or is it…?"_

"Nebby…?" Lillie said tentatively, like she couldn't believe it. She certainly wasn't alone. The lion turned, eyes gleaming with what looked like kindness, as he looked towards the blonde. She reached up, hand shaking with Komala attached to her arm. There was a slight hesitation in her touch, but she managed to do so, patting against him. "Nebby! Komala, it really is Nebby!"

"Komaaa…" Komala yawned out, but he did sound just as excited about it. Ash didn't realize that he was doing it, but he and the others that had traveled so long with Nebby also reached up to the lion. He nestled in, smiling with his eyes closed.

_"Thank you, Lillie, and all of you,"_  Nebby spoke so confidently. Ash looked over to Lunala, who was nodding at them, looking pleased at it.  _"Thanks to all your efforts, I have regained my full form and been reunited with one I missed so much."_

"I…I missed you so much, Nebby!" Lillie said, sounding on the verge of tears. "I…I had so much to say! So much to apologize for!"

_"There is nothing to apologize for,"_  Lunala spoke, her calming voice soothing each and every one of them. Lillie even stopped her near tears.  _"As the sovereigns of the Ultra Space, we have endured so much more. That Solgaleo…or Nebby, has even deigned to be with you and stand here now, shows how much he knows you care."_

_"Indeed,"_  Nebby spoke. Ash let out a breathless chuckle; it was weird to hear Nebby not shouting "pew" every couple seconds.  _"Lunala has endured far worse under the Dread Sovereign than I ever did in your care, or the care of Lusamine. He and Nihilego held her in thrall, preventing her from pulling herself out. Thanks to you, though, we have achieved that."_

"It…it was nothing," Clemont admitted, rubbing the back of his neck as Lunala bowed to all of them. It felt beyond surreal, though clearly not to Gladion.

"Dread Sovereign?" he asked with concern. Nebby faced away from Lillie, who had wiped the vestiges of her tears from her face, in order to get serious.

_"The one who locked us in the Ultra Space, stripped us of our powers…he…no, it, now supports the entirety of the Ultra Space. I am not aware if it has manipulated Lusamine and directed her actions but…"_

"No. My mother is in control of herself," Lillie said decisively. Nebby and Lunala gave no reaction to that at all. "Maybe she's let go of her inhibitions thanks to Nihilego, but every action she takes is still her own."

_"Quite possibly,"_  Lunala agreed, bowing modestly. Ash felt he was a little lost, but continued to listen onwards. " _Regardless, the Dreaded One, another name we have for it, has long been seeking to break free, as had we, in order to regain our power, which exists in the void inside it. Even now, we are searching for one another, for the light. It was an eternal struggle, until six years ago."_

"You mean until Michael?" Ash asked, though it was more of a rhetorical question than anything else. He wasn't sure if either Nebby or Lunala would understand of whom he was speaking, though it didn't matter. He was now piecing things together for himself.

_"The event six years ago almost permanently linked our worlds once more, long after the guardian deities of Alola had originally sealed them, but recent events weakened the boundaries,"_  Nebby explained further to them.  _"When this so-called 'Michael' attempted to bridge the divide, we all saw the chance to escape; for us, to reach freedom, but for the Dreaded One, to devour this world. Thankfully, he was ill-informed, though it led to our separation, and the prime Nihilego with me. It eventually lost the energy to sustain itself…"_

_"And was tasked with keeping me prisoner,"_  Lunala concluded. Ash nodded, relatively understanding everything. Lillie gasped, as though she understood something of importance, but whatever it was didn't matter to any but her.  _"Yet we are two halves, inexorably drawn to one another at twilight and dawn, and at last we have reunited! We are prepared to gain our power back!"_

_"Indeed!"_  Nebby rumbled powerfully, sounding like the fire of the sun.  _"At long last, our power has returned! Likewise, I am well aware of your plan to save this world, the world that I know you all love so much. So, we shall aid you! Through the portal to the Ultra Space we have created!"_

_"Inside is a space of mixed realities, dangerous to traverse,"_  Lunala continued.  _"Yet, if you stick with us, you shall be safe. If we can put an end to the Dread Sovereign and stop Lusamine's desires, then the void should be sealed up. Your world saved!"_

"If that's the case, what are we waiting around here for?" Ash asked, smirking a little as he put his hands on his hips. The others all nodded, while Nebby sounded like he was chuckling. He said nothing, acting like he should have known the whole time exactly what they would say.

_"Then, grab on!"_  Nebby roared. No one needed telling twice, even Team Rocket. Their entire group instantly made their way to one of the two great legendaries and held tight (though not before Bonnie grabbed the dropped flutes), with those riding Nebby clambering on top of him. Rotom looked beyond excited, even mentioning something about its backup data. Once Nebby and Lunala made sure they were secure, the two looked at one another, sharing a moment of tenderness before each gave a cry again. Time started up as Plumeria suddenly gasped and the Team Skull members cried out in a comical fashion.  _"Here we go!"_

"Plumeria! We'll be back soon! Get everyone to defend this portal until we do!" Ash yelled back. Plumeria watched, still in a state of shock, but eventually nodded while she recovered. Once she had, Nebby bounded forward through the air, making a giant leap towards the rippling portal, while Lunala soared right at it. Shrieks, screeches and roars filled the air, and Ash gave one last look to the sky, as what looked like their forces and those of the Ultra Beasts came in to clash once more.

Then, Ash felt like he was suddenly squeezing through something, the breath being stolen from his lungs as all those battling in their world disappeared from sight. Team Rocket was screaming in fear. Hau and Bonnie were laughing gaily. The others, however, were all focused on the impending battle inside the Ultra Space as they all passed through the portal. Ash closed his eyes, waiting for something to happen while Pikachu gripped at his shirt tightly. Then the squeezing stopped, and he felt a warmth around him, like a bubble.

_"We have arrived,"_  Nebby spoke. Ash opened his eyes, dropping suddenly from Nebby's back. His feet hit the ground, and he realized that, at the very least,  _that_  surface felt normal. Behind him, there was a light, shrinking slightly, but holding itself open. He couldn't hear anything from beyond, on the other side, and the silence was all too obvious in the space, but he could sense the titanic battle still taking place in their world.  _"Lusamine is no doubt further in, where the Dreaded One commands the forces…or perhaps even relies on her to do so. Promising a perfect fusion of worlds…"_

"The walls are so weird," Bonnie commented. Ash looked to them, noticing at last the composition of the walls they were sandwiched between. For now, it looked like a corridor, leading towards a larger area at the end, as if the space itself was incomplete as of yet. Pikachu shivered upon him, while Greninja tensed. There was a darkness up ahead…no doubt Lusamine and their "Dread Sovereign". Most notable about the walls, however, was that they were pulsing and looked like undulating blue rivers. Bonnie reached out for one, but James suddenly reached forward and took her hand.

"I wouldn't touch those, mini-twerpette," he said coldly. Hearing that, Ash knew he was serious.

_"Indeed, I would not,"_  Lunala explained. Bonnie didn't pout, but looked at the large bat.  _"While you remain with us, you are yet safe, though in time, those who are not could inevitably lose their minds. This_ is _a place where worlds blend and collide, after all. To touch the walls could suck you inside an endless abyss of memories, pasts, presents and futures that have been accrued. Best to stick close to the center."_

"S-sorry…" Bonnie said.

"Rotom can sense the area's strangeness. All but Rotom's most basic functions have been shut down, which is why Rotom backed up data. Rotom cannot even display a map!" the Pokédex moaned out. Dedenne seemed to not care, hopping out of Bonnie's bag and patting her softly while looking ready for the battle ahead. That gave Ash an idea.

"Everyone, come on out!" he called, sending his pokeballs into the air. All of his Pokémon emerged, and Ash realized that he had been able to easily call forth them all, either by Greninja having left his pokeball of his own volition, or possibly just the rules of the Ultra Space. The others saw that as a good idea, and those who didn't have their Pokémon out, called upon them. Thankfully, they were all able to fit in the corridor. "Okay, Nebby, lead the way."

Nebby nodded, and he began stepping forward, the giant lion carrying them down the eerie corridor of silent space. Serena suddenly gripped at Ash's shoulder and he looked at her, noticing her staring at the wall. It looked like a bubble of memory was floating by, showing Alain and his Charizard fighting one of the red Ultra Beasts outside the portal. It was replaced with another, showing a familiar blond man, with a familiar blue flute, calling forth pouring darkness. Then, another, where Mallow and Lana stood back to back as Totem Lurantis slashed against one of the electrical Ultra Beasts. They continued on, their breathing barely audible in the space. He was starting to feel like he was being doused in constant water. Another image flashed by, one of a baby girl, held by two people that looked familiar, but the sight was gone too quickly.

"This place would be fascinating…if it weren't frightening," Clemont remarked. No one disagreed with him. Ash walked a little forward, taking a glimpse of Lillie, whose lips were set in determination. He filled himself with that same determination. The darkness drew closer and closer, and the space suddenly began to resemble something more…physical.

Broken rocks were strewn about the area. There even seemed to be slats of wood, and in the distance, mountains. Ash could even swear that he heard the trickle of water, despite there being no lake or river. Objects that looked like twisted trees were also sprouting from the solid surface of the ground. It wasn't hard to notice how empty and barren all of that seemed. However, Ash was solely fixated on a large rock ahead, bringing his feet to a stop while Pikachu leapt off his shoulder. He, Greninja and the rest of the team drew ranks while the others stopped, as well, staring with him.

"Well, well…If Lusamine wasn't right," cackled the voice of the man that was sitting lazily upon the rock. "She said y'all would be comin'. It didn't want to listen, but turns out she knew more than enough. It wouldn't get half as far without 'er."

"Guzma." Ash's voice was even, staring at the leader of Team Skull. He smirked, and then threw himself off the rock, disheveled hair flapping about and his glasses jiggling before he landed with what would have resulted in a large thud if they were back in their own world.

"But, I shoulda seen it comin', too. 'Cause I ain't no Ultra Beast that's got this single-minded obsession. I ain't that stupid," the man said, stalking forward with a wicked grin upon his face. He was fingering his pokeball, but Ash looked beyond him for just a second, feeling the intense pressure further along the corridor. Yet he snapped back to Guzma in a second. "But you…y'all are just stupid! You stepped into the beast's den, tryin' to stop our dreams…and I ain't letting you out alive."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: I'd like to think this was an exciting intense chapter, but only you guys can tell me that! Still, a lot of action! Also, finally taking my "hormone" subplot somewhere with the toxins making Ash and Serena lose their inhibitions. Good thing for Pikachu! But, with everything, more information was revealed. I've been hinting at the "Dreaded Sovereign" since midway through the first book, and now we're close to the reveal. However! This does not mean Lusamine is not the main villain. Just want to clear that up. Otherwise, we're in the Ultra Space and face to face with Guzma. So, let's do this! Things are about to heat up epically!
> 
> Really, a great thanks to those who supported me thus far. Hope you'll continue, so please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	26. A Beast

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know you've all been waiting for what's to come this chapter. Naturally, it's the last time in this story I used XY&Z to write it, though the timing would be difficult to describe. I very much hope you enjoy Chapter 26!

Chapter 26

A Beast

"So, you're still alive," Gladion spat, their entire group facing down the "big and bad" boss of Team Skull. Ash watched the older man. Something was off about him, his grin leering and lopsided. He looked almost unhinged, if Ash was completely honest, but managed to retain his sense of self through it all. Nebby and Lunala seemed to prepare their bodies to strike. Ash flicked his eyes around, and Lillie seemed to get the message, placing her hand on Nebby to calm him down.

"Not now," she whispered. Ash focused on Guzma, seeing him toss his pokeball up and down with that ever-leering grin. The leader of Team Skull was staring between Ash and Gladion, while Pikachu and Silvally came forward, growling at the man. "We need to save our strength. Right, Komala?"

"Malaaaaaa…" Komala agreed, yawning loudly, but Ash could feel the tension that was ratcheting upwards between each and every member of the group that was there before Guzma. Nebby didn't relax, but he nodded his large head to indicate that he had heard, and would honor, Lillie's request. As Ash stepped forward, Lunala pulled back, her large wings shielding Team Rocket and Clemont. Hau tensed up.

"Guzma, move out of the way," Ash said calmly, filled with purpose. Guzma finally fixated the leering grin solely upon him. He stopped tossing the pokeball, catching it before he started chuckling. That chuckling grew and grew in the creepiest of fashions until it became a full-on burst of laughter as his head tipped backwards.

"Ahahahahahahahaha!" he roared raucously. There was no echo in the space, and Ash kept watching as Pikachu pawed at the ground. Finally, Guzma's head snapped down, scowling at him angrily. "Y'all are stupid! Comin' here! Did ya even have half a brain?"

"We came here because we had to," Ash spoke clearly and concisely. With his words, his friends all tensed even further than before, ready for battle. Even Team Rocket and their Pokémon, who were very obviously scared out of their minds, prepared to fight against him. "We came here to stop Lusamine. Stop the Ultra Beasts. And I came here for  _you_."

" _Me_?" Guzma laughed out, though the scowl was ever present on his face while he did so. "Like I give a damn! I made a promise to the president, and I'm seein' it through, kid. No one like you is gonna stop me."

"And what promise is that?" Ash asked. He took another step forward, Pikachu and Greninja with him. They were filled with purpose radiating around him, something Guzma seemed to almost flinch at, but didn't turn away from. "Is it worth so much to destroy the world you were born into? Your family? Because if it is, I don't think you're thinking for yourself, Guzma."

"Shut up!" came the snappy retort. Ash watched Guzma's body language as it also tensed, just the same as his opponents. Even in his unhinged state, he was dangerous…perhaps even more than he was before. The reason was quite obvious to Ash: a month or more in the Ultra Space, without the protection of either of the legendary Pokémon would no doubt manage to drive anyone crazy. He had to wonder Lusamine's own state. "I don't need to be lectured by some kid! I know what I am! I'm strong! I'm destruction incarnate! The bad boss that beats you down and beats you down and never lets up! I'm your boy, Guzma!"

"You're not 'my boy'," Ash said, and now his body was shifting into an attack stance. He wasn't about to let this conversation continue on pointlessly. Greninja and Pikachu got ready. "I don't care what you say you are, because it's obvious to me that you've lost it, Guzma. Now, move, or we'll make you move!"

"Lost it? Don't ya know? That's what happens to  _everyone_  in this place, heh heh," Guzma was now chuckling out, like he was enjoying his own personal reveal of this piece of information. Of course, no one reacted, already knowing this. "Ya see things… _memories_. They drive ya crazy! They don't even have to be yer own memories and it still sucks ya dry.

"But ya know…at the same time…it gives ya this clarity! Like what ya are! I'm your boy Guzma! Here to bring destruction in human form, all for her sake! She asked it of me! And without her words, how can that dream of mine be reached? That world where  _I'm_  a chosen one!" Ash breathed in, hanging his head a little bit before he grabbed his hat and flung it off. Serena reached out and caught it, like it was a gauntlet being thrown down.

"Then, we share dreams…but if all you're doing is following what she and everyone else said…then you really  _are_  nothing," Ash said, glaring at the leader of Team Skull now. Guzma's lips twitched, glaring at him fiercely. He was angry. "All of you, go, now! I'll take care of Guzma. We need to settle this."

"Oh? The little boy wants to play with Guzma? Let's remind ya of the record!" Guzma cackled out, and he finally tossed his pokeball forward. Golisopod appeared with its raggedly creepy breath, clicking its claws. Like its trainer, the Pokémon appeared to be winding up for a fight. "You and yer friends ain't goin' anywhere! Not while I have somethin' to say about it! I already told ya that yer not gettin' to the president!"

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash yelled. Before Guzma could even make his first move, Pikachu sparked, striking at his cheeks rapidly and sending the electricity through the air. It sparked and sizzled before it hit Golisopod. Guzma was making a move, but Ash closed in, striking out with his elbow to slam the man in the cheek. "Move! Now!"

"Nebby, come on!" Lillie yelled, and without waiting, she jumped on to Nebby's back. She also pulled Serena up, who held a hand to Gladion. The blond didn't take it. On the other side, Clemont and Hau were pushing Team Rocket on to Lunala. Meanwhile, Bonnie and Rotom hopped up using Serena's open hand.

"Gladion," Ash said sternly to his friend.

"Not this time!" Gladion spat out, smirking to him. Ash would have laughed if it was the appropriate time; they really had all come a far way. "I think we have a score to settle together."

"Come on, boys! I'm lookin' forward to draggin' ya down with me."

_"Ash…"_  Nebby spoke, and the raven-haired trainer's eyes snapped to the large lion ferrying his girlfriend and the others.  _"The longer you remain here without our assistance, you may start being affected. Be careful."_

"I've got it, Nebby! You just keep the others safe! It's time to put a stop to this madness!" Ash said, pounding his fist into his hand. Guzma was recovering from the opening strike, along with Golisopod.

_"Very well! Fare well, Ash!"_  With those words, Solgaleo bound forward, the same as Lunala flapping her giant wings to gain a burst of speed. The force from the gust backwards sent Guzma reeling once again as their group got past him and kept going through the corridor to whatever space lay ahead. Ash didn't pay attention to them any further than needed.

"Silvally, Multi-Attack!" Gladion called out. Silvally charged forward, wreathed in a bright white light as it slammed against Golisopod, driving it against the lone rock without a care in the world. Guzma clearly recovered himself, shaking his head.

"Yo! I didn't say they could leave!" the man snapped, his breathing almost as ragged as his Golisopod's voice. His head whipped around, the feral gaze centered on the two boys, but Ash was ready. Guzma ran at him. "Guess I'll just have to take the two of you out before I deal with yer friends!"

"Not gonna happen! Greninja, use Cut!" Ash yelled out. Greninja sped forward, and even Decidueye was at his side, both drawing blades of white and green respectively. They neared Golisopod and slashed outward. Guzma reached Ash and Gladion, who nodded, and the two boys punched together. Guzma caught their fists, but the boys didn't stop. Their other arms came soaring out to sock Guzma in the stomach. The man gagged in surprise. "Decidueye, the rest of you! Go and help the others deal with the Ultra Beasts! Greninja and Pikachu can handle this here, but right now, they'll be fighting the Ultra Beasts and need all the strength they can get!"

"Kooroo!" Decidueye hooted out, disengaging from Golisopod and zipping to the side. Lycanroc was already obeying, speeding past the gagging Guzma, who was straightening up. Passimian and Kommo-o seemed to clap Ash on the back as they ran past, and Toucannon chirped out before pursuing her best partner in Decidueye. They soon disappeared down the corridor, which, Ash noticed, no longer showed his other companions.

"Crush Claw, let's go!"

"Pikachu, Iron Tail!" Ash yelled. Guzma ran again, but now the duo raised their legs and kicked at him. He knocked the legs aside, but neither worried too much about that for the moment, hopping back on their one leg. It was like they were reading each other and Guzma in battle, their fists pounding together. Silvally's blood red claw swiped upward, while Pikachu's glowing tail slammed downwards, each colliding with the Hard Scale Pokémon's body fiercely. Golisopod staggered while Ash and Gladion spun around to nail Guzma in his sides with their synchronized kicks.

"Damn you, brats! Last time we fought, you couldn't even string two attacks together!" the man spat out, bringing his hands slamming on the legs. It bruised, but Ash simply lowered his foot. "What changed? Huh?"

"Heh, that's something you wouldn't understand," Gladion noted.

"You always consider yourself better than everyone else, Guzma…never respecting your opponents, regardless of where they stand compared to you. But we respect each other," Ash told the man. Guzma's scowl etched itself deeper, and became even more enraged. His fist rippled with fury. "All it means is that you never form your own opinion of the person you're fighting, and-"

"Shut up, brat! First Impression!" Guzma roared. His hands flew out, gripping like they, too, were claws. At the same time, Golisopod's claws and fangs glowed their sickly green. Then, both trainer and Pokémon whirled forward angrily. Ash reacted instantly, acting with the same instincts that Kahili had taught him. His elbow snapped out and blocked Guzma's strike while Gladion struck forward. Golisopod's devastating attack was also on the move, and he and Gladion shouted.

"Block it!" they screamed. Greninja and Pikachu snapped to attention, bringing out their white blade and glowing white tail, respectively, to slam up to the two claws, holding them in place. As Golisopod's fangs lowered, Silvally intervened, slamming the jaw with Iron Head to block it. Ash grabbed ahold of Guzma and swung him around as he yelled his next command. "Aerial Ace!"

"Nin…ja!" Greninja shouted, his limbs glowing white. He kicked up, his feet now slamming into Golisopod's jaw. The First Impression ended, having left nary a piece of damage, though Ash knew the battle wasn't done yet. Gladion swung his fist out, reaching for his Z-Ring. Ash let go of Guzma, sending the man spiraling and tripping along the corridor, though he stopped before he hit the wall. Ash snapped out and stopped Gladion by gripping his arm.

"Save it for when we might  _really_  need it," Ash told him, looking straight into Gladion's green eyes. The boy stared back, but sighed in acknowledgement. "Help the others. Let me handle Guzma. I know you have a score to settle, too…but this is more than personal for me."

"Right. But one last request: duck!" Ash did just that and Gladion punched out, nailing Guzma on the cheek, as the man had recovered. That seemed to have bought the blond enough time, slapping his hand on Ash's with a smirking grin. "Silvally, let's go!"

"Hrrrrr!" Silvally grunted a little, looking to Pikachu. Ash's best friend pumped his fist, and Silvally seemed to accept that. The duo dashed off, and Ash faced Guzma, who punched right at him, knocking into his shoulder. Ash stumbled from the unexpected strike.

"This ain't done, kid!" Guzma snarled out. He suddenly grabbed hold of Ash's head and slammed his forehead against Ash's. The Skull boss seemed surprised, however, when he saw how easily Ash took it. The month with Kahili had truly paid off in more ways than one. "Ya just don't stay down, do ya?"

"Never! Not while I have people I care about and a purpose for them and myself! Pikachu, Quick Attack!" Pikachu leapt back a little, only to charge forward, surrounded by white light as he slammed into Golisopod's chest. Ash brought his knee soaring up into Guzma's chest.

"Razor Shell!" Guzma spat. Golisopod snarled like its trainer, summoning the watery blades from its claws and slashing. Ash looked over to Greninja, who clearly read his mind. The Ninja Pokémon's limbs glowed a bright white and punched forward to meet with the Razor Shell and counter it. "Use yer other claw for Brick Break!"

"Iron Tail!" Ash said. Guzma and Golisopod moved in tandem, bringing their open-palmed fists soaring down. Ash blocked Guzma's, while Pikachu swung upwards with his glowing tail and stopped the Brick Break. No further command was necessary, though, as Pikachu acted immediately after, by summoning a crackling orb at the end of his tail with a grin. It fired, impacting, yet again, with Golisopod's jaw. The Hard Scale Pokémon's attacks ended, allowing Greninja to kick upwards and slam into its chest. Ash grabbed on to Guzma's arm once more. "Throw it, Greninja!"

"Grenin!" Greninja agreed, enclosing his arms around Golisopod's. Both trainer and Pokémon moved together, bringing their opponents together by swinging them around and slamming into each other, with a loud "oof!" expelling from Guzma's lungs.

"Now, hit 'em with Water Shuriken!"

"X…X-Scissor!" Guzma snapped. For a moment, Ash thought he saw his eyes shrink, becoming almost solid white in color. Golisopod crossed its claws, glowing purple, but Greninja had leapt backwards, tossing liquid shuriken after liquid shuriken at the foe.

"Now, Thunder…bolt!" Ash screamed out as he kicked at Guzma, hitting him squarely in the chest. The leader of Team Skull flew back as Pikachu's electricity exploded into Golisopod. Both trainer and Pokémon soared backwards, slamming into the rock that was there. Greninja and Pikachu both landed next to Ash, who was waiting. There was no way that was enough to defeat Guzma, though he wasn't concerned; even as much of a lunatic as he was now, Ash was starting to understand his desperation…and the strength he sought to achieve everything he desired.

"Heh heh…ha ha ha ha ha ha!" came the cackling laughter, and Ash shifted his foot. From within the clearing smoke cloud, an orange aura suddenly flared up, pushing the rest of the coverage away. When it cleared, Ash could see that the pulsing aura was around Golisopod's body, reminiscent of all the Totem Pokémon he'd faced. "You really stepped into the beast's den, ya fool! And now yer gonna get eaten!

"Don't ya get it yet? The Ultra Beasts  _are_  Pokémon! They're just like Golisopod, here…and when ya stay here long enough, you get power! So much power! Power enough to make yer own world! To crush everything before you! To prove I'm more to them! That I'm better!"

"Go on and prove it," Ash said, raising his fist into the air and clenching it tight. "Show me your pain, Guzma! Because you'll  _never_  beat me if you keep thinking only about what everyone else says. You're too lost, not even seeing what's in front of you; what's waiting for you on the other side. So, let's rumble!"

As Golisopod's body pulsed with the wicked orange aura, Greninja's body exploded with the watery torrent. The final battle with the leader of Team Skull was about to begin.

* * *

"Let's hurry, Nebby!" Lillie shouted, patting the giant lion on his mane. Komala remained affixed to her arm, Serena noticed, even as they bounced along. Bonnie was gripping to Serena, the tired mumbles of Squishy and Bluey resonating from her bag. The honey blonde had to admit that she was very proud of the little girl, both for not showing any fear, but also putting all of her petty squabbles with Rotom aside. Lunala flew close.

"How much farther until we reach the target?" Clemont shouted, as if asking both Lunala and Nebby together. Neither of the majestic beasts answered the question. They merely continued their flight along the floor. Taking in that reprieve, Serena looked to the rippling walls and her eyes widened at some of the images floating past.

It really was this strange blend of so many different things. At some of the parts of the wall, she could see snippets of the battle outside, like Hapu kicking one of those electrical Ultra Beasts back with Mudsdale, for Mina to intercept and finish it off. Or Alder and his Bouffalant getting blasted from behind by one of the swift moving ones that was caught by Gary's Electivire. There was even a scene of Sawyer and Seamus back to back in the thick of foes. Just as quickly as those appeared, they vanished away, and Serena could swear she was seeing the future: shadowy figures near a bright rainbow light, someone battling what looked like Diantha, and finally a man and woman clad in wedding regalia. She almost thought it looked like her and Ash in that final vision, but that all faded away to the sight of Michael, standing before what looked like the Lake of the Moone.

"Dis place is totally creepy!" Meowth called out, crawling atop of Wobbuffet. He wasn't alone, the big blue lug surrounded by all of Team Rocket's Pokémon. "Like, dose images in da walls…I could see da boss orderin' us to do creepy tings!"

"I don't like it! So, let's kick this witch's butt and get out of here. It won't do good for my beauty!" Jessie snapped, and Serena could hear the fear in her voice. Team Rocket, in general, looked suitably freaked out by the images in the wall. Not that Serena could disagree. Even to her, they were disturbing, and all of her Pokémon cuddled up against her to give her strength.

"Uh-oh! Ultra Beasts, dead ahead, and they're swarmin'!" Hau's voice called warningly. Pipi zoomed forward, her body sparking as she readied herself for battle. Serena followed Hau's direction and looked to see that a veritable army had shown up as a last-ditch effort to stop them from getting to Lusamine. Clemont reached up and adjusted his glasses, chuckling a bit.

"They  _really_  don't want us to get there!" he said, like he was mildly impressed. At his words, James stood up atop the swift moving Lunala, pointing forward, while Crabrawler launched forward to clamp on his head. Serena was, herself, impressed that he showed no pain at it.

"Then this is a job for Team Rocket!" he declared loudly. For a moment, Jessie and Meowth looked at him like he was absolutely crazy, but eventually seemed to decide he had a point. They stood up with him, standing back to back with their Pokémon. Hau grinned, while Clemont shook his head. Serena looked back for a second, and if she narrowed her eyes, she could swear she saw Decidueye leading the group of Ash's Pokémon through the corridor.

"Prepare for trouble, this will be our greatest feat!"

"And make it double, you doomed beasts!" Serena couldn't help it. She started to laugh at the trio beginning to deliver their motto in the middle of  _this_  situation.

"To protect our world from devastation!"

"To unite all people within our nation!"

"Well, at least their motto actually works this time…" Bonnie drawled out. She looked down at Rotom. "Are you attempting to record this?"

"Rotom's functions do not work beyond the basic, remember?" Rotom lamented, all while Team Rocket continued their motto. On both sides, forces drew close: Ultra Beasts from the front, and Ash's team, now very clearly visible, from behind. Toucannon's body was lighting on fire as she shot forward to catch up with them. That Ash had let them go ahead showed his confidence in facing Guzma. In fact, Serena also thought she could start seeing someone else pursuing them.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!" Team Rocket continued on, in spite of the approaching battle they were about to collide into. Serena had to admit, it was a little comforting to hear the original motto with very little variation in it. That was a nice thing that even seemed to embolden  _her_  Pokémon, as well.

"Jessie!" cried the magenta-haired Performer as her Pokémon cheered (sans Wobbuffet).

"And James…" he replied, his Pokémon also joining in.

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of flight!"

"Surrender now, beasts, or prepare for a beastly fight!"

"Dat's right!" Meowth snapped, sharpening his claws as they nearly impacted with the swirling army of Ultra Beasts. They clearly realized they were going to have to pull out all the stops on their foes, just as Wobbuffet saluted and cried his name. "Let's do dis ting! Have a face full of my Fury Swipes!"

"Let's get into it!" Jessie and James yelled simultaneously. Serena couldn't believe it, mostly because it was a show of bravery she never would have expected from them, even after how well she knew them. Team Rocket stood on the flying Lunala, herself looking surprised, and they jumped off, shouting garbled commands. Whether or not they were intelligible was irrelevant, because their Pokémon knew. Crabrawler soared forward with Bewear as they reached the first defense on one of the pulsing red beasts.

"Craba!" Crabrawler cried, punching his orange fist into the creature. It didn't do much, as expected, but Team Rocket had always been the definition of persistent and Bewear soon slammed into it with a powerful Brutal Swing. Meowth then sailed over and slashed at it with Fury Swipes. In some part it seemed more like a mere annoyance, until a combined Psybeam and Dark Pulse rocketed through the air and exploded on it.

_Bzzzzzzzzz!_  it screeched out, falling back and landing on the ground in a heap. Team Rocket landed next to their Pokémon, all of them looking rather proud. It was proof of what they could all do in battle. Serena and Clemont raised their hands forward.

"Primarina, Sparkling Aria! Sylveon, Swift!" Serena called from the back of Nebby. Bonnie continued to hang on, and Komala wasn't looking to separate from Lillie in the slightest. Primarina, surprisingly able to fit on Nebby's back, reared back and sent a glittering orb of water out at the same time as Sylveon's feelers flicked, sending the golden stars cascading forward. The two attacks collided with the electrical Ultra Beast, sending it flying back through the corridor and exploding.

"Vikavolt, catch up to the speedy ones! Use Spark!" Clemont called. "In the meantime, Chespin, Pin Missile! Bunnelby, Mud Shot!" Neither Nebby nor Lunala were stopping as, suddenly, the Ultra Beasts were surrounding them, some of them acting like a wall as others planned to make some other kind of attack. Serena didn't pay much attention to that, especially as Decidueye, Lycanroc and Toucannon arrived, slashing through those that were behind them. Vikavolt shot forward, reaching the speedy, bug-like beast in seconds and ramming it with electricity. Team Rocket had already ganged up on another of the beasts while Hau was leaping off of Lunala at the same time as Incineroar, ramming into the cannon-like beast. Pipi then came around and slammed into it with a Brick Break.

_Kuweeeee!_  Serena turned her head at the sight of the slicing Ultra Beast that was aiming right for them. Serena pointed wordlessly and both Braixen and Pancham sent their Flamethrower and Dark Pulse right at it. The attacks impacted with a minor explosion, and they knocked it back, straight into the wall, where it appeared to get absorbed inside.

"We're slowing down," Lillie commented, having noticed that Nebby's footfalls had slowed immensely by this point. It was certainly a worrisome thing. The longer they remained here, the more they would tire before even  _reaching_ Lusamine. They weren't the only ones to realize this, either.

_"Solgaleo, we cannot tarry!"_  Lunala spoke. Nebby shuddered a little, as though realizing she was right in some respect.  _"If Lusamine is directly influencing things, then you and they must break through to her. We cannot waste time on minions!"_

"Silvally, Tri Attack!" Gladion's voice roared. Serena was surprised to hear it. Ash's Pokémon made sense, especially seeing the teamwork between Passimian and Kommo-o as they pummeled one of the Ultra Beasts, but she could have sworn that he had remained fighting with Ash. The three colored orbs exploded on an Ultra Beast and Gladion and Silvally ran through the resultant smoke. "Split yourselves up! Lillie, get to her! Myself, Clemont, and the other idiots will hold off the Ultra Beasts!"

"Hey! We're not idiots!" James protested. Gladion, naturally, ignored them completely. Clemont adjusted his glasses and stood upon Lunala, looking over to Serena. Hau was too engrossed in the battle, right alongside Incineroar and Pipi, to notice the slight.

"Gladion's right! No use taking us all down! We'll handle things here, no matter how long it takes," Clemont assured them. He punched a fist out, and Serena knew she could take extreme confidence from that. She emulated him, reaching over to him. There was a pact there.

_"Be safe, dear Solgaleo! Now, friends of Solgaleo, let us battle with our souls!"_

_"Remain safe, fair Lunala! Hold fast, Lillie, Serena, Bonnie and Rotom! This is_ my  _power! Sunsteel Strike!"_  Serena instantly grabbed for Lille, holding tight to her in the same vein that all her Pokémon and Bonnie were holding to her (as well as Rotom to Bonnie). Lillie gripped on to Nebby tightly as his body shined outward. It was almost blinding to Serena's eyes, the beast becoming as sun, itself. Gone was any color but white and gold as he leapt into the air. There was immense heat all around them, and yet, they were all protected. Then Nebby soared through the air, like a hurtling comet. The others all watched, for just a single moment sending their wishes for safety to the advancing group. Before the air cleared, she saw all of them turn back to the battle, including Lunala, who swept her wing across to blow some of the Ultra Beasts up into the air.

_"Grrrrrrrah!"_  Nebby roared, sounding like the mighty and majestic lion that he was. His power burst around him and cut straight through the Ultra Beasts that were directly in their path. They all fell away as though they were nothing before the great beast. Some tumbled into the walls and were absorbed, but Nebby didn't stop. His paws hit on the ground and he continued to run along powerfully, the sounds of battles starting to recede. Some of the Ultra Beasts gave pursuit, and Serena and Bonnie turned around.

"Fairy Wind! Powder Snow! Blow them back!"

"Shock 'em with Parabolic Charge!" Bonnie ordered. Dedenne ran to the tip of Nebby's tail, body glowing with the power of electricity. He squeaked as the electricity burst into the air, in the form of an orb, and soared for the pursuing beasts before exploding into numerous, shocking currents. Then the frigid wind hit, blowing their foes into the wall, where it consumed them. Serena swallowed; she had to wonder just what had happened to them. "Great job, Dedenne!"

"Dene!" Dedenne said, looking very proud, and surprisingly without the need to sleep. Serena turned front, as the corridor, which had been growing steadily wider, finally expanded itself into a wide-open space. Nebby pulled to a sudden stop once they were in the wider area. Lillie was the first to leap off, and Serena and her Pokémon followed suit, their feet hitting the ground, but producing no real sound from it. Serena breathed in and looked around, seeing gnarled roots and rocks and ruins, yet felt no life from any of it. It was a veritable cornucopia of dead worlds blending and twisting together. Bonnie gripped Serena tightly and Lillie walked forward. The honey blonde quickly moved to be by her side.

"You're okay?" she asked, placing a hand on the blonde's shoulder. All of her Pokémon moved close, ready to defend their trainer, even little Sandshrew, who took courage from Pancham.

"Yes. I have to do this. Gladion entrusted me to try and get through to my mother," Lillie assured Serena, and she smiled. Nebby growled a little, and Serena saw him glaring in a specific direction. They all breathed in before they stepped forward, across the wide-open space. It was empty, for the most part, though Serena got a rather ominous feeling in general from the space, like something was simply waiting in the wings to strike.

Any feeling she'd had was completely dwarfed by the individual directly ahead, however, sitting lazily upon a cluster of rocks, shaped like a throne. She was leaning to the side, head propped up on her closed fist that was supported by her elbow. Her voluminous blonde hair spilled around her, and her green eyes were sharp, almost cat-like, while her mouth was stretched into a thin smirk as she stared at them. They moved forward together, Nebby hanging back to scan the walls with Bonnie and Rotom. Finally, they stopped, and no one spoke.

"Mother…" Lillie said, her tone biting and fierce. Lusamine looked up a little, and Serena stared into her eyes. There was no soul inside them, yet Serena didn't think it was from her time in the Ultra Space. She felt they'd been that way for far longer, masked all this time.

"Ah…Lillie…" Lusamine purred out, the voice sounding deadly in the space. Serena drew closer, her own eyes narrowing. "You came after all, and brought the beast with you. Splendid. Finally, things can be made right again."

"Right?" Lillie asked, though her tone indicated that she wasn't falling for any of it. "What part of this is 'right'? You're going to destroy our world for an illusion, mother!"

"What of it?" Lusamine asked. She sat up, her smirk so wide that it started to make her eyes bulge. Serena stepped forward, all of her Pokémon clinging to her side. Yet, even in all of that, despite the woman's insanity, she seemed to speak with an absolute clarity of mind. "Why should the world matter to you or me? We can have  _this_  world! This wonderful, beautiful world!"

"Of nothingness," Serena said. Lusamine's smirk dropped, replacing itself with a scowl as she noticed Serena was there. "Take a look around you, Lusamine. There's nothing here, and there never will be. Not even a speck of life. You'd be living a lie."

"Mother, you can destroy the world, create some version that you think will fulfill you…but it won't take away the grief and the pain!" Lillie shouted. Her voice didn't echo, but it caused Lusamine to stand slowly, ugliness splashing itself across all of her features. "Father is gone, and everything…everything you did…it pushed me and Gladion away! How could we ever love you after what you did? I had to ask myself that, constantly. But even so…in the end, I made my choice: I came here to save you."

" _Save_  me?" Lusamine laughed out. She sounded so thoroughly amused by the concept, going so far as to give a screeching, loud laugh at the thought of it. "I am in no need of saving, you wickedly ugly child! The Ultra Beasts saved me from my despair, ripping away the pain. I love them, and if they can give me my perfect world of happiness, what is it to give them  _your_  world in return?"

"Pain…" Serena whispered, her fist clenching. "You…"

"Mother!" Lillie yelled angrily, stamping her foot upon the ground. It still made no sound, but the very action drew Lusamine's attention with a look of incredulity. "No…Lusamine!  _You_  are the ugly one! I told you I wasn't your puppet, and for that reason, I am not going to let you destroy everything  _I_  love! And if you ever loved me…it's my responsibility to see your schemes brought to an end!"

"Oh, Lillie…you horribly misguided child. You could have had beauty on par with the Ultra Beasts, but now, you're but a withering flower…nothing that I ever imagined." Lusamine shook her head as she smoothed her dress, and her smirk returned, looking even crazier than before as her eyes glowed in the darkness of the Ultra Space. "I am not controlled by grief, Lillie. This is a mutual agreement so we can each obtain what we want. I have to thank Michael for showing me this path."

"Stop lying to yourself," Serena snapped at her, once more earning the ire of the woman's gaze. Lillie was shaking next to her, almost like she had a feeling of intense rage that was about to boil over. "You may be aware of your actions…but those actions were a result of the grief you couldn't handle, and instead of being there for the ones who loved you, you stopped loving them! You let it twist you and control you until you became this thing, just a shell of a human."

"So, what if I am? Better to be a shell than to live in a world that stripped everything away."

"But it doesn't," Serena spoke, lifting her hand and placing it on her chest. "The world is full of many things: happiness, sadness, pain, joy, grief, love, conflict, despair, hope and so many emotions that you couldn't even imagine. All of them are a part of us, whether we want them to be or not. Especially pain. Pain…pain is  _always_  a part of us.

"But it should  _never_  control us!"

"This world is nothing, though. You can't feel  _anything_ ," Lillie spoke sternly, as if  _she_  were the one scolding her mother. Lusamine's veneer didn't crack, though Serena could see the smirk twitching, just a bit. "Not fear. Not grief. Not love for anything, even the Ultra Beasts."

"Is there anything even deserving of my love?" Lusamine asked with a flat coldness to her voice. Serena stopped, staring at the hopeless woman before them. Lillie was still shaking, the confrontation with her mother taking a greater toll than she had clearly expected. Of course, she was probably wrestling with the ultimate question regarding her mother's fate. Serena breathed out, fully leaving Bonnie and Rotom behind as she stepped forward carefully. Lusamine watched her as she did so until they were facing one another directly.

"Did you ever really love them? Or were they always just tools to you?" Lusamine didn't answer, or perhaps she couldn't. The woman's mind was so far gone, so focused on this single thing that she thought would heal everything for her, that it damned everything else. It had always been her choice…and the choice was to live without the one thing that could make them all whole. The one thing that made her stir inside, made Lillie protect Nebby, made Clemont and Bonnie grow, and all the people of the world to stay fighting outside. Yet Lusamine was without it, so how could she even  _live_?

Serena exhaled, and looked the woman straight in the eyes before saying, "What a tragic creature you are, Lusamine.

"For all your belief in love and making things beautiful, you ignored so much of it when it was right in front of you. Just like him…and so unlike them. Their grief hurt them and twisted them, but they both acted from a place of love, unlike yourself. You convinced yourself that the world and its pain wasn't worth it, threw it away for some illusion…but if that feeling is an illusion, then it was never  _real_.  _That's_  what makes you such a tragedy, to live without love in your life. I would rather live with all the pain in the world than to live a second without love!"

Lusamine seemed to move her lips in contempt, staring down at Serena. Bonnie drew away, looking at the writhing walls that Nebby was observing, sensing the impending battle that was to come. "You're naïve."

"Maybe I am," Serena told her. Lillie stepped forward, taking her hand as she stared her mother down. "Maybe I'm stupid. But I've seen so many people suffer, crying out in pain with no one answering them. But each of them found  _something_  in their lives through love: family, friends, the people and Pokémon closest to their hearts. Instead of taking they began to  _give_. I know, for that very reason, how important love is. It's that kind of love that makes me keep going, lets me know that my dream is possible."

"Your dream? Everyone happy and smiling as you dance around as a queen or some Ali'i ka Leilani?" Lusamine scoffed, beginning to laugh loudly. The woman's hand reached for the pokeball at her waist. "That's such a farce. You can never make everyone happy! No matter your accolades or your own smile, it's impossible. Didn't I tell you that? But here…I can build a world where I, alone, can be happy."

"But no one else can be!" Lillie shouted at her mother, yet the response fell on deaf ears. Serena just gazed at Lusamine with a steely expression, having her full attention, even if just for a moment.

"You're right…I can't make everyone happy, not by becoming queen or the Ali'i ka Leilani, and certainly not you," Serena spoke, her voice building in volume with every word. "But then again…I don't need to be a queen. I just need to be me. I'll still aim for that goal, because then, more will see me. More will share that smile. They may not need it. They may not want it. But I promised Reeree, and if one more person can smile who wouldn't have if I hadn't, then it's all worth it!

"I'm not doing this alone! Not like you who cares for no one but herself! I'm going to make everyone smile by making the person next to me smile, and then they'll share  _their_  smile on and on in a chain, until everyone can finally hold on to that shred of hope and happiness."

"You…" Lusamine ground out, her snarl making it almost impossible for her to even form words. Lillie stepped forward.

"This is it, mother," she spoke. Komala detached from her arm, while Serena's Pokémon readied themselves. The walls began to move, undulating with a waiting army of Ultra Beasts. "I won't allow you to take away people's happy endings for your illusion of one! We're not tools for you to throw aside! I'm not a puppet for you to use!

"I am Lillie, and as your daughter, I'll finish this. Whether you loved me or not is irrelevant, because I love all those who surround me. Nebby! Bonnie! Serena! Ash! Clemont! Hau! Gladion! This world! I  _won't_  let you take it! Go ahead and consider me a failure of a daughter, because I don't  _need_  a mother like you!"

"You ugly creatures!" Lusamine shrieked, her veneer breaking at long last, giving way to the psychosis underneath. Serena stomped her foot into position. "You intrude on my beautiful world with your ugliness… _my paradise_! Speaking such filthy words! Very well, Lillie, if you wish to hear it so much, you're nothing to me. Now get out."

Lillie and Serena stepped forward together while Milotic emerged from Lusamine's pokeball, looking as crazed as its master with an orange and blue aura flowing all around it. Braixen twirled her wand, and the Ultra Beasts seemed to start emerging from the walls. The two girls joined their hands. The love shared between them and all those fighting gave them the strength to push on and they snapped, "Make us!"

Milotic coiled together and then sprang forward, just as Serena and Lillie commanded their Pokémon to do the same. Tears flew from Lillie's eyes and Serena clasped her hand. Ash had broken through to Gladion…now it was their turn to do the same…even if it meant ending Lusamine, once and for all. The battle for their world had finally begun in earnest.

* * *

"You arrogant braaaaaaaat!" Golisopod was barreling down the hall for Ash, its claws crossed with the shining purple-pink hue. Guzma was likewise charging straight at Ash like a feral beast, prepared to rip him to shreds. The raven-haired trainer held his ground.

"Quick Attack, Pikachu!" Ash called out. Pikachu shuddered a bit and then bounded forward, streaking with white light as the glowing Golisopod was coming down on them. He slipped between the claws and slammed into its chest, sending it off kilter. Guzma was almost upon him and Ash reached for his back while Greninja ran forward. He grabbed the shuriken on his back. "Slice upward with Water Shuriken!"

"Niiiiinja!" Greninja cried, taking the shuriken and slashing up on Golisopod's chest. At the same moment, Ash's fist flew upwards and snapped into Guzma's jaw, making the man stumble back, but retain some of his sanity and presence of mind to give a command.

"Brick Break!" Golisopod gave out a shuddering breath, its claw tearing down upon Greninja's head with shining ferocity. Ash grimaced, feeling the full blow. The distraction was enough for Guzma to punch at him. He managed to avoid the blow, though it still smarted against his cheek. Ash turned to his oldest partner, still needing to get used to fighting while synchronized once again.

"Electro Ball, make it quick!" Ash shouted. Guzma punched again, but this time Ash got the upper hand, grabbing ahold of his arm and spinning him off to the side. Pikachu jumped up, spinning around as the orb of pure electricity was summoned up to the edge of his tail, and then flicked downwards. "Into Iron Tail!"

"Block it with Razor Shell!" Guzma roared, hopping on one foot to balance himself yet again. The Electro Ball made contact with Golisopod's head, though the Hard Scale Pokémon looked like it was hardly staggering. Guzma had recovered, breathing raggedly, his fingers twitching. Pikachu spun downward.

"Chuuuu pika!" Pikachu's brightly glowing tail came slamming upon the watery blade that suddenly protruded from Golisopod as it grinned.

"Cut!" Ash said, plunging downwards to his waist, while Greninja did the same. He called forth his watery kunai and slashed straight through Golisopod, causing it to stagger. Pikachu's attack broke through, slamming upwards into the jaw. Guzma's lip twitched. "I told you: you're not beating us!"

"Shut up, kid! I'm takin' you out!" Guzma roared out, throwing his fist out. Ash punched as well, his connection with Greninja making his trusted Pokémon move, as well. "Brick Break!"

"Aerial Ace!" The two Pokémon struck forward with glowing limbs, colliding just as Ash and Guzma's fists did. Guzma's hand opened, gripping Ash's and pulling him close. Now that he was so near to him, Ash could see the loss of self within Guzma's eyes, from all his time in the Ultra Space. The situation changed in Ash's mind. "Guzma, stop this! You need to leave the Ultra Space now! Before it's too late! Plumeria-"

"No way in hell, kid!" Guzma roared. Ash frowned, but cocked his head to the side in order to avoid the headbutt. "This is the only way! The only way to mean somethin'! Golisopod!"

"Greninja, now!" Ash yelled, cutting off the man. At the same time, Greninja cut off the enemy Pokémon. The Brick Break broke through, turning the Greninja that was in front of it into water which trickled silently on to the floor. Greninja suddenly appeared from behind, the stealthy Double Team seeming to have been successful. He struck, slamming the Bug type powerfully with a glowing kick. "And Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

"Chuuuuuuuu!" Pikachu shouted from the ground on the other side. Ash didn't see it happen, too busy bringing his arm out to wallop Guzma's side. The man stumbled as his Pokémon was consumed with electric shocks. He was breathing heavier than before, like he couldn't believe the occurrence before him. Pikachu and Greninja surged forward, one slamming down with Iron Tail and the other up with Aerial Ace on the same place: Golisopod's jaw.

"Damn you!" Guzma roared, kicking out to nail Ash in the chest. Air escaped his lungs and he flew back from the heavy strike, but Ash avoided touching the walls. He saw visions flit along their surface, but tried to not pay attention to any of them. "People like you…always lookin' down…lookin' down on me! I ain't standin' for it!"

Ash's eyes narrowed. Was Guzma letting everything out? Had he been in the Ultra Space so long that everything that made him, himself, was starting to leak out? They sounded so similar, if that was the case. Yet at the same time, the white-haired man seemed to have lost it, desperate to prove something, to  _be_  something. "Guzma…how lost are you…? I'm not looking-"

"Savage Spin-Out!" Guzma roared, his eyes flashing. He crossed his arms, the familiar glow of a Z-Ring gleaming as he uncrossed and crossed them once again. His hands moved like pincers, slashing powerfully at the air. The yellow-green glow surrounded Golisopod, and its jaw moved, suddenly beginning to spit out string.

"Cut it apart! Use Iron Tail!" Pikachu and Greninja acted instantly, cutting at the thread. They had already dealt with this threat once before and failed, but this time he wasn't alone. Guzma's mind didn't seem like it was holding itself together much longer, though. For a moment, the man clasped at his head. Then Golisopod was rushing forward with powerful, glowing claws, preparing to slash through both of Ash's partners. "Water Shuriken and use Aerial Ace! Pikachu, get moving!"

"Stop…stop lookin' at me that way! I'm Guzma!" Guzma ran forward, and Ash kicked at him. He crossed his arms and blocked the kick, but was pushed backwards. The man may have been crazy, but his fighting skills were still right there. So was his ability to keep up, making him even  _more_  dangerous than normal.

"Niiiinja!" Greninja called, his foot, rimmed with water, also firing out to stop Golisopod's charge. He held his opponent there, straining against the exertion of Z-Power for a moment, and then he flipped around to slam its side and push it back. Pikachu returned to his companion's side as they refaced their enemy.

"Guzma, stop now!" Ash yelled at him. The man snarled at him, drawing up to his full height menacingly. "This isn't worth it! I won't let you win, so please stop fighting pointlessly and we can-"

"Ya jus' don' get it…do ya?" Guzma breathed out. He was smirking again. "I'm your boy, Guzma. You think a little thing like this place is gonna do me in? I'm better than everyone else. Better than you. And if she wants it, I'll give it to her! She, at least, considered me more than trash."

_Lusamine…_ Ash thought to himself. How had the woman twisted him into such a loyal lapdog? Not that it mattered; he was still the same as always. He had just switched out the words of other people for hers instead. Ash shook his head. If words would no longer push Guzma out of the way, he'd just have to give a show of strength. Ash raised his fist. "Okay, Guzma. I get it. If the things I say won't snap you out of it…then I'll just beat you until you get it!"

"Beat  _me_? Did ya forget? I'm your boy Guzma, the hated boss that beats you down and-"

"Cut, let's go!" Ash wasn't going to waste time talking, not with everything that was on the line. Greninja sped forward, his kunai drawn out and slashing straight through Golisopod. Likewise, Ash ran at Guzma and punched straight into his stomach. The man gave a loud "oof". "Iron Tail!"

"Razor Shell!" the man yelled. Pikachu and Golisopod ran at each other. The yellow mouse jumped into the air, his tail glowing as he brought it crashing onto the watery blade that had come from Golisopod's claw. They clashed, and Pikachu whirled around in midair, blocking the next attack like they were a pair of dueling blades. Ash looked to Greninja, reaching for his back as they had the same thought. As one, they moved as though throwing it. Ash swiped at thin air while the giant shuriken slammed into Golisopod's back, but seemed to do nothing. "Brick Break!"

"Gohhhhh…" it shuddered out, whipping out with surprising speed. Pikachu fell away, landing on all fours while Golisopod's shining claws slammed into Greninja's shoulders. Ash winced, feeling the heavy strike in time for Guzma to now hit him in the chest. He jumped back to gain distance.

"Greninja, grab Pikachu! Toss him!" Greninja moved quickly, skirting around the sides. In a flash, he was grabbing on to his old companion and tossed Pikachu right into the air. "Iron Tail and Electro Ball!"

"Pika pika pika pika pika chu pi!" Pikachu's shining tail combined with the powerfully sizzling orb of Electro Ball. Then it struck, yet again, on Golisopod's jaw. The Hard Scale Pokémon roared with pain, in time for Ash and Greninja to move in concert. Both brought their fists screaming out and, with them, socked their respective opponents in the face. Guzma stumbled back.

"X-Scissor!" he spat. Every blow he was taking almost seemed to unhinge him further, like he couldn't believe this was happening to him. Ash just watched him, observed him for a second. Golisopod's claws crossed together, slashing with an evil light as it ran at Greninja.

"Block it with Water Shuriken! Pikachu, Quick Attack!" Greninja took his shuriken off, holding it forward like a shield. Golisopod crashed into it powerfully, driving Greninja back a bit. Likewise, Guzma had punched forward, as well, right into Ash's crossed arms, snarling. Pikachu came running forward and nailed Golisopod in the side, causing it to break away. Ash pressed the advantage, slashing up to knock Guzma's jaw. "Use Cut!"

"Razor Shell!" Greninja dropped his shuriken shield, running forward with spinning kunai that intercepted the Razor Shell, colliding a couple times as they both slashed at each other in a whirling frenzy. At the same time, Ash and Guzma were raining blows at one another quickly, each attempting to hit the other, but being blocked. "Guess I was underestimatin' ya, huh? Still full of fire, but now you've made it stronger."

"Not at all," Ash said, smirking a little at his opponent. For the first time, they were standing on equal ground…no, Ash felt that, for just a second, he stood higher than Guzma. In a way, he wanted to reach a hand out and pull him back up there. "It's the same fire…I just know what I'm aiming it at! Double Team and mass Aerial Ace!"

"Ninja!" The cry echoed multiple times as multiple copies appeared all over the place. Each one of them soared in, and Ash leaned back before punching forward. Guzma blocked the attack, but instead of allowing himself to be trapped again, Ash kicked out, nailing Guzma in the side. The Greninja surged in like a storm of glowing limbs.

"X-Scissor! Clear 'em away!" Golisopod slashed outwards, clearing the first layer of Greninja as its arms glowed and it charged in, straight through the swarm of copies. Then it reached the real one, its aura flaring as it struck Greninja's chest.

"Gah!" Ash cried out, feeling the pain in time for Guzma to grab his hair and knee him in the same exact spot. Golisopod was moving further forward for the strike and Pikachu suddenly rushed in. The remainder of the attack hit him instead, and Pikachu went skidding along the ground, digging in to reach a stop before he could hit the wall. At the same time, he was sending a raging volt out to collide with their enemy, bringing it to a momentary halt. "Aer-aerial Ace!"

"Brick Break!" The two Pokémon charged at each other like normal, limbs glowing a streaking white that collided with one another as their punches met. Ash also punched forward, just like Guzma, and the two struck each other on the shoulders, driving one another away. Guzma stumbled, scowling even further now. On the other side, Brick Break broke through, hitting Greninja's chest, while the frog's own shining fist snapped into Golisopod's stomach. Ash grunted, the pain smarting quite a bit.

"Pikachu, Iron Tail! Get it off balance!" Pikachu ran forward with a cry, and he swiped his shining tail at Golisopod's leg. The Hard Scale Pokémon buckled, allowing Greninja to dash forward. His kunai were in his hands and he sliced in a cross fashion against Golisopod. The great Pokémon roared with pain, nearly toppling, but managing to barely remain upright. Without its trainer's command, it cloaked its claws in a watery blade and slashed out. The attack knocked into Pikachu and sent him flying right at Ash. Guzma was coming for him, as well. "I've got ya!"

"No, yer done!" Guzma roared. Ash's outstretched hands caught Pikachu, and then he whipped his leg out and kicked Guzma in the stomach, driving him back. The man tripped and rolled along the ground, pushing himself up in seconds, his eyes wide. Ash let Pikachu to the ground as he stared down the leader of Team Skull, who was panting heavily. "No…way…I ain't losin' like this! Not to some brat! Some twerp! Some kid!"

"Then don't think of me that way!" Ash yelled. Guzma didn't look to be listening. "All right, let's end this! Speed it up, you two! Electro Ball! Aerial Ace!"

"Pika!" Pikachu called out in agreement. He began to run around the area swiftly, calling forth his usual sphere of electricity and sending it flying. His speed picked up as he flung orb after orb upon Golisopod. Likewise, Greninja was moving fast, almost impossibly so. Guzma was running at Ash, his eyes widened. Their fists clashed. Greninja slammed upon Golisopod before disappearing. When he reappeared, he struck it again, and kept going.

"How…how are they so much faster? So much stronger?" Ash sent his fist screaming out, slamming against Guzma's face powerfully. The man was knocked back, slamming into his Pokémon.

"I already told you! We know how to direct our fire! We're getting faster and stronger just for that!" Ash yelled, and he crossed his wrists together, his Z-Ring glowing blue and red. "Like I said, Guzma, you can't beat us. The same as you said to me, you don't know who you really are! Well, we do! We're Pokémon Masters, and we're going to understand everybody! Even you! If you can't understand that, or yourself, there's no way we're letting you get an inch! Double Team!"

"Shut up!" Guzma roared, spit flying from his mouth. Ash's words had to have struck a nerve. The man planned to run forward, but all the copies appearing on the ground and in the air prevented him from doing so. He froze, and Ash uncrossed his hands before reaching to the sides. Orange shuriken dotted the entire area, making it look like the Ultra Space was on fire, before he raised the hand high and they all came together, each large and destructive orange shuriken above each of the multiple Greninja's heads.

"So, take this from us! SCORCHING SHURIKEN!" All at once, the copies of Greninja hurtled their shuriken like blazes of fire. Pikachu joined a Thunderbolt in with it. The attacks battered their opponents in such rapid succession it sounded like multiple explosions going off until the final one landed, from the real Greninja, and blasted upwards with such a conflagration that it made it impossible to see for a moment. Greninja landed, and the smoke started to clear.

Golisopod was on the ground, the orange aura gone, smoking and passed out.

Guzma, on the other hand, was heaving in deep breaths, his body off-kilter and bruised. "No…no…"

"Guzma, it's over," Ash said sternly, planning to make him see reason. "There are people waiting for you to come back. You still can. Each one of them wants to see you again: Kukui, Akela, Hala, Plumeria, your boys. They're all there, just waiting. Let go of whatever Lusamine promised you. It's not the same as the real thing! We don't have to do this!"

"I…I…" Guzma heaved out, sounding as though he was on the verge of throwing up or passing out. His head was bowed low, his hair hanging in front of his face as his necklace dangled lower, sunglasses sliding down his head a bit. Ash's lips pursed themselves into a frown.

"Guzma, just end this and come home. I made a promise," he said.

"I…I…" Guzma suddenly snapped up, his eyes almost a pure white as his pupils and irises shrunk so much they were almost unnoticeable. "I'M YOUR BOY GUZMA!"

With a feral roar he charged at Ash, as though unaware of anything else around him. He was just screaming, and he punched forward. Ash gave a small sigh and reached his hand out. His hand caught the fist and completely stopped Guzma's progression. The man's eyes widened, and his other fist snapped across to hit Ash's face, but the raven-haired trainer dodged it completely. "Guzma, it's over."

"No! No, it ain't over until yer done! I'm more than nothin'! I'm more than you or anybody else says! I'm gonna be more than that!"

"Get a grip!" Ash yelled. His free hand snapped out, knocking Guzma's other fist away. Then his knee came up, slamming into Guzma's stomach and driving him towards the wall. He still looked like a crazed beast, charging down like an angry Tauros. "That'll never change! Even if you go to some other world, you'll always be nothing, because that's what you've decided to be! You've taken everyone else's opinions of you and made  _that_  yourself instead of thinking  _for_  yourself! Why do you think I said you'd never win?

"If you constantly think of yourself in the way that others look at you, you'll never be more than a shadow! You need to free yourself!"

Guzma attempted to retaliate, punching forward yet one more time, but Ash dodged. He, himself, gave a punch that sunk into Guzma's face, driving the both of them backwards with the quick and extreme force. Guzma's sunglasses flew off, spiraling through the air and landing on the ground. The momentum of the fight, however, continued on. With Ash's final punch that carried itself into Guzma's face and knocked him out, blood spurting from the man's mouth and nose, the two males collided with the walls of the Ultra Space and, within seconds, both were absorbed inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Lots of action this chapter for sure. Serena and Lillie are confronting Lusamine at long last, for one thing. This was meant to be a big culminating character moment for both of them, especially everything Serena realized in regards to her dream. But, of course, the meat of this chapter was on Ash and Guzma, with the tables having flipped entirely. Golisopod is still a beast, but Ash's clarity of purpose helped to wreck Guzma…only to get sucked inside the Ultra Space. Hope it was all suitably epic.
> 
> We're about halfway through the climax here and the battle is only going to get fiercer in the upcoming chapters! Until then, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	27. A Similarity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was very glad to see last chapter was received so well, even if I would have loved to see more people receive it, ha ha. Oh well, let's continue on with Chapter 27!

Chapter 27

A Similarity

Clemont felt like he could sweat buckets. Not that there was any heat inside the Ultra Space. Or cold. Really, it didn't feel like there was much of anything but a twisted amalgamation of worlds in that space. From images of Kahili and Y flashing by to those of one of the swift beasts descending upon what looked like Keoni in Po Town, there were plenty of those visions, too. And Ultra Beasts…there were a  _lot_  of those. However, traveling to the other world didn't mean that his sweat glands had simply vanished in all of a second. That was evident from the fact that the front of his shirt was soaked.

"Luxray, Electric Terrain!" Clemont ordered. Hau was next to him, commanding the same exact order from Pipi, both to expand their range and beef up any remaining electric attacks.

"Great idea! Silvally, System Change: Electric!" Gladion called out, using his Z-Ring to resonate with Silvally. The Pokémon's body sparked, tail fin turning yellow, as did the plumage. "Multi-Attack!"

"Hrrrrrah!" Silvally roared, charging forward into what looked like a grouping of Ultra Beasts, particularly noted as the one that looked like a strange cannon, called Celesteela (as said by Lunala). It exploded with an electrical pulse that sent the grouping of the beasts skittering on to the floor. Clemont whipped his head around rapidly.

"Team Rocket, Hau, make sure those sparking ones don't make it near the electric field!" he yelled out to his companions that were there. "I can only imagine what will happen if they do."

"We're on it! Crabrawler, Payback!" James ordered, striking a pose that Hau seemed to think was ridiculously cool. Crabrawler scuttled forth, firing a pitch-black ball from its claw. The orb slammed into the big red beast, again named by Lunala as Buzzwole. Not that it did much, and the beast punched forward with an orange fist.

"Go, my sweet Bewear!" Jessie cackled out. Bewear ran forward with a squeal and the fists of the two collided. Clemont focused his faculties back to his own battle that needed paying attention to. They were surrounded by swift moving Ultra Beasts that seemed to be running circles around the inventor and his Pokémon. No matter what Chespin and Bunnelby tried, they couldn't seem to nail a single one of them.

"Vikavolt, we need your speed! Bug Buzz, slow it down!" Vikavolt zipped forward, trying to track the speedy Ultra Beast. Soundwaves that were blood red in color began to emanate off of his body, and for a moment, Clemont could see their particular quarry. "Luxray, Wild Charge!"

"Pipi, help out with Thunderbolt!" Hau called from the edge of the electrical border. His Incineroar was swinging forward with his black flames to slam against the electrical Ultra Beast. Luxray sped forward, brimming with powerful electricity, before it closed the gap and was able to slam into the lithe beast, having been stalled just long enough. In the same moment, Pipi acted even quicker, the electricity of a Thunderbolt striking into the beast and leaving it in a smoking heap.

"There are still more than that," Gladion noted, drawing his back up against Clemont's. He didn't look particularly pleased with the layout of the situation, his eyes continually flicking back towards where they had come from. Towards Ash. There was obviously a sense of worry there, and even Clemont was feeling that worriedness grow. They had already been battling for some time, and Ash had made no show of himself.

"Koorai!" Decidueye called out, zipping forward towards one of the other speedy beasts. Lycanroc was at his side, the fastest of Ash's two Pokémon reaching their quarries in no time. Decidueye flipped with an Acrobatics, sending one of the beasts sailing into the wall, where it was absorbed, while Lycanroc howled, and stones emerged from the ground to impale another. Not that it was enough to defeat it until Passimian jumped up and nailed it with a barrage of Shadow Balls. "Koo! Koo!"

"You're worried, too, aren't you?" Clemont asked of the Arrow Quill Pokémon. Decidueye nodded. A Xurkitree, the sparking Pokémon, appeared behind him, aiming to destroy the Grass type, but Toucannon blazed from nowhere with a fierce expression to knock it aside. Decidueye raised a wing in thanks to the bird and Toucannon nodded, once more alighting to take off. Clemont watched her soar and noticed Lunala nearby, whirling many of the Ultra Beasts around with Psychic abilities that slammed them on the ground until they passed out. She truly was a thing of beauty. To anyone that didn't know, it would have seemed impossible that she'd been held in captivity.

"I'm pretty sure we're all worried," Gladion noted. "We wanted to all stick together, but none of us actually expected this. We're all split, and who knows how long it will take us to fight through these damn things!"

"It's a real pickle," Hau laughed out, though when Clemont looked over to him, he could tell that the look on Hau's face was essentially anything but joking. This was something he was taking more serious than anything before, evidenced by Incineroar powering up from the boy using a Z-Move. Clemont turned away as Kommo-o jabbed onto one of the sparking Pokémon. Already, the Electric Terrain seemed to be fading, and Clemont wasn't about to order it back up again; there was simply no advantage to the ultimate risk.

"The twerp can handle himself," Jessie insisted. Gourgeist whirled in front of her, sending forth a Leech Seed that trapped the Celesteela in front of her, at least for a moment, until it broke out. Thankfully, it was slammed into the wall by a Bubblebeam from Crabrawler. "Though, I'll admit a bit of trepidation about leaving him behind in a situation so sticky."

"Yes, the whole thing does feel rather icky," James noted, drawing closer to his female companion.

"Well, dis ain't da time to be picky." Clemont wasn't even sure how Meowth's statement possibly applied to the whole situation whatsoever. Lunala flapped her wings, disappearing from sight and then charging through a line of the Ultra Beasts. At this point they were simply blocking the path forward. Clemont swallowed and reached up to try and wipe even more sweat away. Something was gripping him, like a sense of sharp, pained worry that was filtering inside of his heart. If the others' expressions were anything to go by, they were worried, as well.

"Komm! Kohm!" Kommo-o suddenly shouted, leaping away and looking towards the corridor. He wasn't the only one. All of Ash's Pokémon leapt backwards, looking fearfully to where Ash was fighting with Guzma. They couldn't see him from that distance, but their reaction could only inform Clemont of one thing, something which he shared aloud.

"Something's happened. Vikavolt, Charge Beam!" he yelled. Whatever their trepidations, they were still in the middle of a battle, no matter what the situation was both in front and back. Vikavolt moved to intercept two Ultra Beasts, firing a Charge Beam that immobilized them long enough for Silvally to slash across them with a Crush Claw. That was enough to utterly destroy them. In hindsight, it made it all the more impressive that Pikachu had managed to take such a beast killer down.

"Happened like what?" Hau asked, himself now joining in backing up against them. His smile had dropped, and Clemont noticed how tired both Incineroar and Pipi were looking. Even Team Rocket was drawing closer anxiously. Only Lunala seemed unfettered by the situation, at least until she gave a sharp cry.

_"Seems they have summoned reinforcements!"_  she shouted to them, and for a moment, Clemont wondered where they could be coming from. Then his head grew foggy, and a voice began to whisper in his head, telling him to destroy what was right in front of him. To not care about what damage he inflicted and crush the target. Gladion, likewise, gripped at his head and Hau gnawed at his finger.

"Not…good…" Clemont gasped out, trying to stop his brain from acting on the things that it was telling him to do. He didn't want that or need it. He raised his hand, wanting to give a command, knowing that there had to be some Nihilego which were infesting the air and rendering them to ineffective, bubbling messes. This was clearly something that Lunala took keen notice of.

_"Go back to your shadows and your master, Nihilego!"_  she shouted, sounding like royalty, only fierce and biting. It was like cold steel under a night sky from the way that she called out, at least to Clemont.  _"You have meddled in the affairs of humanity for too long! Young man, gird yourselves, for I shall show no quarters to my former captors!"_

"Um…uh…" Clemont scrambled, not sure how exactly he was going to be doing that when he had no Pokémon with Protect on hand. Ash's Pokémon closed ranks, themselves acting as a defense. Gladion had an infinitely better idea, throwing a pokeball into the air and calling his Toxapex up.

"Toxapex, we need you to protect us as best as you can with Baneful Bunker," Gladion asked of his most bulky, defensive Pokémon, gritting harshly at his teeth.

"Tox!" Toxapex agreed, remaining in place and beginning to quiver and shake. The purple shield that had been such a source of grief for Ash in the League began to extend. At first it was just a disc, not covering much space than what was right in front of them, and even worse was that the foggy feeling was only increasing. Gladion, holding himself together, bent down and put a hand on Toxapex.

"Just try your best. Every little bit helps," he instructed of the Brutal Star Pokémon. Toxapex's feelers seemed to nod a bit and it continued to act. The shield began to expand, larger and larger, until it started to become like a dome around their entire clustered party. The Ultra Beasts were moving in, prepared to wreak havoc upon all of them with no remorse. Most, in particular, were the now visible Nihilego, swaying creepily through the air. Finally, there was something akin to a hissing sound that said the shield was closing, though Toxapex seemed strained from it.

"Now, Lunala! Whatever you're planning on doing, do it now!" Clemont cried. Lunala's eyes flashed with their pink glow and she raised up in the air. Her body became almost translucent, pale and ghostly. To Clemont's eyes, she looked as though she were the moon, itself, in all its glory. She began to spin in the air, fiercely glaring at the assaulting Ultra Beasts.

_"Moongeist Beam!"_  she bellowed. From her body blasted out a powerful beam, comprised of the night sky and stars, themselves. They sliced through the area, impacting with all of the Ultra Beasts. The attack even slammed into their own group, Toxapex straining against the absolute power of obliteration. Clemont could feel his body shaking and he gripped to Hau. Incineroar, Toucannon and Decidueye all gripped to one another as well. Everything seemed like it was going to end…even the fog in his head.

Clemont snapped his gaze upwards and saw all of the Nihilego dropping, along with the rest of the Ultra Beasts that had been swarming them and barring their path. It was nothing more than a brilliant sight of the moon, the destruction wreaked in completion. The attack ended shortly after, and Clemont only then realized that his ears were ringing from the howling wind that had been a result of Lunala's strike. The shield dropped, and most of them fell to their knees.

"Amazing…" Hau commented, his eyes wide. Before them were strewn all of the Ultra Beasts that had been standing in their way. Clemont even had to wonder if Lunala had needed their help to begin with, though her wings appeared to be drooping, indicating that there was still much strength she had to recover. He stood.

_"We…must hurry. I have felled them, but there may yet be more waiting to devour us. We must reach Solgaleo, before the Dreaded One reveals itself,"_  Lunala pleaded from them. Clemont walked forward and placed a hand on Lunala, realizing how tired she was. He leaned in and then whispered to her.

"I'm sorry, but not yet." Lunala looked to him, as though surprised to have heard such a statement coming from him. "He's our friend, you see. We can't abandon him, and we'll need him for that fight ahead. If you want to, go on ahead."

_"N-no…I shall remain. Just hurry. If your friend is lost, and you believe we shall need him…simply pull him out. If any of you fall into the Space without my protection, do the same, but be quick!"_  Lunala responded. She slumped a bit, almost hitting the ground, but managing to remain afloat in that moment. Clemont patted her once more, as a show of thanks for everything that she had done. He then turned around and noticed that Decidueye was already leading the charge of Ash's Pokémon back down to corridor. They weren't alone, Team Rocket very quickly trailing after them.

"Like heck we'll let the twerp get into that kind of trouble and not bail him out!"

"Indeed! We're connected at the hip, without a doubt!"

"And dat's what gives us real Team Rocket clout!"

"Stop rhyming, you infernal idiots!" Gladion shouted after them, but he, too, was following. Hau was going right at his side, grinning like he absolutely loved the rhymes that Team Rocket seemed over-prone to spewing. Clemont had to smile, and then he ran forward after them, his own Pokémon at his side. This time,  _he_  would save  _Ash_  from whatever sticky mess he'd gotten into  _this_  time.

* * *

Ash felt himself being swallowed by a void, nothing but blank canvas everywhere he turned. He wondered, for a second, if he was losing his mind. He twisted and turned, gasping out into the silence, but unable to find any exit from the blank space that was consuming him. There was nothing there, but it all felt…familiar…like something he'd experienced before, though on a less personal level. Ash stopped moving, steadying his breath and breathing in, trying to not let himself be scared or overcome with panic.

_Think, Ash, where have you felt this before?_  he asked of himself, though he didn't instantly have the answer. All he knew was that there was no way out, and though he could make sound, no one was able to hear him. There was some muffled shouting, but it sounded so far away, that Ash had to wonder if it was all even real in the first place.

Then, he heard crying.

It was a child's cry, nestled somewhere in the white abyss. Suddenly, the whiteness flashed black, like the bottom of a very dark ocean, where someone was drowning. Ash felt himself floating forward, now, and he cut through the "water" to swim along, towards where he heard the crying. Soon, the sight became clear, and his eyes widened. It was a young boy with a shock of white hair, bruises all over his body, as an older man stood before him with a golf club.

"What is  _wrong_  with you, Guzma? Stop crying! Crying won't bring your mother back! And get that wimp of a Pokémon out of here! It's useless! Does nothing but run away at the sight of danger!" Ash reached a hand out, but found he was stuck, anchored to something far beyond his sight by a black chain. It was Guzma. Guzma was the boy that was crying before him, clutching to a small Bug type that looked like a smaller, weak Golisopod, flat in shape.

"I-I'm sorry!" the young boy cried out. The man swung the golf club, and Ash closed his eyes, not wanting to see the result of what was about to happen. There was a loud thwacking noise, and Ash opened them again to see that the boy was no longer there. In fact, now Ash was standing in a classroom. If he had to guess, it was one at the Pokémon School by Hau'oli City.

"Today we have a new student. Say hello to Guzma!" Principal Asuka spoke, though she seemed to be little more than a teacher in this image or memory. Guzma walked before the class with the same smirk he had always worn, even to this day, hands in his pockets as he stood proudly.

"Yo! I'm your boy, Guzma! You want the strongest kid around, come to me!" Guzma said, pointing to himself and giving a chuckle. Ash heard himself breathing, almost like he was stunned. Pieces were starting to be put together inside his mind. Two students near the front row were talking, as Guzma walked forward and sat next to the boy, all while the purple-haired girl scoffed. It was all too obvious who these three were, and when the desks vanished, leaving just the three of them behind, instead, Ash's thoughts were confirmed. "Come on, Kukui, Akela, it'll be fun!"

"You'll get in trouble, idiot!" Akela noted, folding her arms and puffing her cheeks out. She wasn't dressed in the same finery that she'd worn all the time that Ash had known her, but was wearing a somewhat simple, and almost ratty, sundress. Guzma reached forward and took her hand, with Kukui's as well. The girl looked incredulous for a moment, but also blushed a bit at the contact.

"There's no harm in it, Akela. Gotta live while we still have our youth!" Kukui laughed out, sounding almost like a patch of sunshine. "We don't want to end up crusty like Master Hala! Besides, once we've completed our trials, we'll all be contributing positively to society! No more of this foolin' around stuff."

"Yeah! That's my man, Kukui! Always stickin' up for your boy!" Guzma said, knuckling down on Kukui with glee. They really looked like the best of friends, and the air felt so bright and happy around Ash.  _Memories…These are Guzma's memories…then what…_

"Let's make a promise," echoed the three's voices as they suddenly vanished. Ash felt himself being inexorably pulled forward, flashing through so many things like a tape being played out on a screen. Memories of the misadventures that their trio would get up to, their scoldings and general fun times. "That even if we take different paths, we'll always find a way back to each other! We're friends!"

_What went wrong?_  Ash had to ask. So many visions rushed through his head, almost overloading his brain with what he was seeing. Test results were given to the trio: Kukui and Akela received perfect scores, while Guzma practically failed the course. Hala coming to visit and taking Guzma under his wing, right alongside Kukui. Yet there was something different in the relationship between the two boys, now; something resentful.

"Guzma, respect your opponent! If you cannot respect them, you will never truly defeat them!" Hala insisted upon the older boy, now looking of age to begin his trials. Guzma didn't seem to want to listen, though, more bruises stippling his figure.

"You useless boy! You'll never amount to anything!" snapped a harsh voice. The owner couldn't be seen, but it was like this ceaseless echo that never truly died in the air around Ash. He felt like he was being pulled further along, and he noticed now that the walls were turning from white to black, sinking further into the abyss. "You can't pass a test! You're not even as strong as your classmate! What good are you? Just leave already!"

"You'll never amount to anything!"

"Amount to anything!"

"Anything!" Ash grimaced, feeling the keen sting of those words. He had felt them once before, when he had started his journey so long ago. How  _Gary_  would be the one to put Pallet Town on the map. How  _he_  was nothing but a footnote, never to be recognized or known. He was just expected to silently take his journey and live in the shadow of the great Gary Oak. To everyone but his mother, he had been a nothing. He knew how Guzma felt, but…

"I'm takin' my trials!" Guzma was roaring, slamming a fist upon Hala's desk. The old Kahuna bristled with righteous fury and he stood, staring down the apprentice that was before him.

"You'll do no such thing! You're not ready!" Another flash of black, this time accompanied by the sight of a swinging golf club, and the sound of breaking wood. "You haven't learned to respect the islands' traditions!"

"Like I give a damn, Master Hala!" Guzma yelled. "I need to grow stronger! Stronger! Then nobody be laughin' at me again!" Another golf club, and the sight of Guzma in a house,  _his_  house, as he trashed everything around him viciously and violently. Ash's breathing sped up at the sight of it, gripping his heart in some sense of fear. Guzma had sunk so far, was always sinking far. He was told he was nothing; believed the only way to be something more than nothing was by screaming at the top of his lungs. The more he did, the hoarser he got. The more he tried to climb out, the further he sunk. Hala defeated him. Kukui and Akela surpassed him. More black surrounded his mind, taking up the pure whiteness that had once upon a time been the boy named Guzma.

He stood all alone in that house, bent golf clubs thrown distastefully to the side as he snarled at the ruined floorboards and table. The only thing he hadn't touched was the door, like it was some sort of a memento, a reminder of his time with his mother, no doubt.

"The trial system, wasn't it, Guzma?" Ash breathed out, unsure if the man was able to hear him. His memory self didn't, at the very least. "They all left you. Called you nothing. Made you feel worthless…and you weren't alone."

They were standing in the rain, now, the deluge pouring down over their heads. Guzma didn't bother with an umbrella, and nor did the woman sitting by the trash cans, wearing a dress that had so many rips in it, it was hardly fair to have ever called it a dress in the first place, just from the way it all looked. Said woman, or girl at the time, it appeared, looked up at him with makeup running down her face. Guzma just stared, hands in his pockets.

"Ya been dissed by the trials?" he asked savagely. As the woman lifted her head, Ash finally recognized her. It was Plumeria, though so much harder to tell without the harsh expression, what little light she had starting to die in her eyes. "Nah, yer too ladylike for that."

"What do you want?" Plumeria snapped, sounding dead. Like she just wanted to lay there until the world completely forgot her, and she faded from existence. It was painful to see.

"I want ya to join me," Guzma said sincerely. He bent down, a smile on his face, holding a hand out to the girl that would become his admin. "They don't give a damn about us, but I do. We're the losers, ya know, but we can still be  _family_. That's somethin' ain't it?"

"Family…" Plumeria said. She considered it a moment, and then reached up and clasped his hand, like he was the only light in her entire life. In fact, Guzma seemed to be the light in many lives. Bit by bit, they grew, at first as just a family. Guzma gathered those around him that made Team Skull into one big, happy family, made of people that were rejected by the enduring Island Pilgrimage.

And soon that resentment grew.

Team Skull was a joke. In every passing memory, no matter the things they tried, people dismissed them, disregarded them. What value did they serve for society? Guzma was an island. He surrounded himself with people, but he was slowly sinking beneath the water's surface, drowning. Less and less people took him seriously. Kukui and Akela ignored him.

"Guzma…you can't!" Ash yelled, being pulled back, even as he reached for the memory of the man before him. The walls were dripping black, almost entirely covered, and now Ash realized what was on his wrist. It was a giant, black chain that was holding him to something, dipping down into the abyss as a figure was drawing closer, yet sinking all the same. "You're still…"

"I…I can't win…" Guzma choked out suddenly. Another memory was there, of Guzma before two people, one with a Hydreigon by his side. Ash's eyes widened at the sight of Michael, an expressionless look upon the cold man's face. He regarded Guzma with no emotions, as though he wasn't even worth stamping out. "Useless! Damn it! I'm not strong enough yet to mean anythin'!"

"But you have a strength all your own," said the simpering voice of Lusamine. Ash saw her approach the white-haired man, placing a finger under his chin and lifting his head up. He stared at her, lips quivering as she leaned down with that catlike smile. "You are someone who can make everything you desire into reality. You're a Chosen One. No matter what anybody says, I can see the truth."

And there it was, Ash realized. That had been it for Guzma. The walls were painted black, and Ash felt the chain lengthening while Guzma sunk further and further into the abyss, seeing no way out at all. He was spiraling downward, lost in what everyone told him he was. Nothing. A loser. Never amount to anything. The boss. And when all else failed, there was Lusamine, who told him he was  _strong_. It had to have been the one thing he'd wanted to hear more than anything; proof that he had finally done something with his life.

There were more and more memories; memories of Lusamine saying all the right things, flattering him, manipulating him. With every action he sunk further. "No! Guzma, stay here!"

Lips on his. Hands caressing him. Whispers of strength. "You can't sink like this! I know how you feel! Come back!"

_You are a Chosen One._  "Guzma! Guzmaaaaaaa!"

Ash lunged forward, ignoring the chain in his way. He felt like he was fighting through sludge, even as Guzma sunk deeper into the abyss. So many people had told him what he was, that there was no longer a "Guzma", buried underneath everything. Yet Ash had promised, promised to bring him back. He wouldn't let all those people down. With a final gasping breath, he closed the distance and wrapped his hand around Guzma's arm, breathing heavily. They floated there a moment. "Guzma, I understand you. I was the same…I was always considered the same but…you can't let them control who you are. You're you and no one else. Only  _you_  can decide your worth."

"Pikapi!" Ash whipped around, still holding to Guzma as he saw a light blossoming in the black. Pikachu's voice was calling for him. In this space that ate up memories and feelings, Pikachu's were shining, reaching for him through it all. The light was growing and more voices were calling for him desperately.

"Come on, twerp, reach already!" Team Rocket was calling together, even Wobbuffet throwing his voice in.

"Hurry up! We can't hold this chain forever without getting sucked in ourselves! Our protection in the Ultra Space only lasts so long here!"

"Man, you still gotta lighten up!"

"Just focus on pulling!" Clemont snapped at the two arguing boys, followed by a number of Pokémon calls. His Pokémon. They had all come for him. He smiled. Their feelings had connected, like a chain made of something stronger than even the Ultra Space was made of. He gripped tighter to Guzma and began to pull him upwards.

"Let's go, Guzma! I'm bringing you home!" he yelled, and he kicked upwards, holding to the man as he reached for the little yellow paw that was coming from the light in the darkness. In seconds, his hand clasped around it, feeling the warmth of those feelings bridging to him; ones that would allow him to be free of that cold, cruel world. The others pulled, and Ash felt like he was being sucked out of a tube. He gasped as he emerged, hanging in the air for a moment before he and Guzma came crashing down with a thud.

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Has anyone told you how heavy you are, twerp?" Jessie complained, yet Ash could hear the strange joy that was in her voice. Ash looked up, and a smile brimmed on his face.

"You're all here!" he shouted. Clemont and Hau waved at him.

"Hard to believe you got sucked in the wall so easily," the latter said with an expelled breath.

"Even more difficult to believe that we just needed to pull him out of it by starting to go inside ourselves, but it does make sense in theory and from what Lunala said, I guess," Clemont added with a chuckle.

"Either way, we can't have you doing something so stupid when we need you here," Gladion smirked out, sitting back. Ash pushed upward, getting off of Team Rocket. His Pokémon, gathered there as well, all leapt at him with cries of joy, save for Greninja, who stood over a stirring Golisopod. They really were back, safe and sound…at least as safe and sound as one could be in the Ultra Space.

"Ungh…ugh…" groaned the voice of Guzma behind him, stirring from his state of unconsciousness. "Wha…? What the hell happened?"

"Guzma," Ash said, turning his whole body to face the man. The leader of Team Skull blinked blearily, as though waking up from a long sleep. It almost seemed like surfing through his memories had pieced him back together, just a little, in the mind. His eyes widened, and he winced, filled with some manner of pain. Ash walked forward, looking down at him and bringing himself into a crouch.

"Can't believe I lost to some kid…How pathetic is that…?" the man almost chuckled out, sounding ashamed from the event. Ash shook his head. "I'm still so damn weak!"

"You're not," Ash assured him, smiling. The others were all backing up, looking to move onwards and back into the battle once again. "You're really strong, Guzma. At least, I think so. I know lots of others do, too. But that shouldn't matter, as long as  _you_  realize you are."

"You…what…?" It appeared to be involuntary, but tears rose in Guzma's eyes, and before Ash knew it, the man had started to cry. Ash continued to smile down at him, and he eventually extended a hand forward. Guzma regarded it like it was something foreign; as though no one had ever once reached out for him.

"I told you, Guzma. There are people waiting for you to come home," Ash said seriously. "I don't approve of what you've done, or any of that, but…I get you. You and me really are the same, in some ways. That's why I know you have the strength to stand up and move forward. Find who you are without everyone telling you what that is. Find you for you.

"So, will you try?"

Ash couldn't tell what the man was thinking after he asked that, a revolving door of emotions playing out across his face rapidly. From shame, to guilt, to sudden tears, and then a sharp gaze in his eyes, as though his mind had been fully restored. No…there was a connection, one forged in those memories. And realization. The man was staring beyond him, towards the pulsing walls, and he could only guess at what the leader of Team Skull was seeing in that blended reality: Plumeria and all the other members of the force that was Team Skull, fighting on their side to save the world that had rejected them, yet was still one that they loved so much. If Ash's words hadn't done it for him, this had definitely done so. At last, Ash could see deep in the man's eyes how Guzma realized that Lusamine had used him, and most of all…

"My brats are waiting?" His voice was full of emotion. Because he wasn't Lusamine. He didn't  _need_  some alternate world. Everything he had was right in front of him. He couldn't stop crying, but his eyes yet sharpened into those of determination.

Then his hand reached out and clasped Ash's, joining on the same side for the first time.

* * *

"Enemies incoming!" Bonnie shouted, pointing towards the walls. Serena flipped backwards, barely dodging the Dragon Pulse that struck the ground in front of her. The Milotic was almost out of control, yet the accuracy with which it was aiming attacks said that it was still  _very_  much under  _Lusamine's_  control. Serena grabbed hold of Lillie and jumped back as another draconic beam slammed into the ground, leaving a slight trail of smoke behind. The honey blonde snapped her eyes upward and noticed numerous Ultra Beasts filtering out through the walls.

"Ah! Rotom's sensor system is broken, as well! Rotom cannot sense! Rotom cannot sense!" Rotom cried, but Bonnie knocked it on its back.

"Calm down!" she shouted. Dedenne chattered out an agreement towards it, and Rotom nodded to indicate that it understood. Serena flicked her gaze around, including to the laughing Lusamine. Milotic wasn't stopping, firing off its Dragon Pulse again.

"Block it with Flamethrower!" Serena shouted. Braixen twirled her wand forward and sent a gushing flame outward, one that blocked the next draconic strike, but only bought them, perhaps, a moment of time. "Bonnie! Don't worry! You can handle them all!"

"Of course, me and Dedenne will take care of all of them!" Bonnie said, clenching her fists.

_"I shall aid you, Bonnie!"_  Nebby said, hunkering low and ready for battle as all of the Ultra Beasts moved in.

"How adorable…sending a child to protect you," Lusamine giggled out. Serena looked to her, seeing how positively crazy the woman's eyes were. Lillie had seen it, as well, her face being adorned with a scowl while she glared at her mother. Behind the two of them, Nebby had leapt into action simultaneously with Dedenne sending a Parabolic Charge into the air, shocking some of the beasts. It wasn't all that effective. "Stop giving me that look, you ugly creature."

"Komala, Yawn!" Lillie shouted. Lusamine blinked, looking hideously outraged by Lillie's ultimate act of defiance. Komala rolled forward with his wood chunk, opening his mouth wide and calling a large pink bubble to it. Then his Yawn began sailing outwards for Milotic. Lusamine scowled.

"Water Pulse," she snapped irritably. Serena finally turned her attention to the battle at hand. Milotic reared back and then lunged forward, sending the orb of pulsing water straight for the pink bubble. They collided with one another, and the Water Pulse proved the more powerful, breaking through the move, entirely, and hitting Komala, who rolled back. Lillie stood her ground.

"Pancham, Sylveon, Sandshrew, help Bonnie out! In the meantime, Braixen, use Psyshock!" Serena commanded, swiping her hand out. They couldn't afford any more distractions. Lusamine was a woman that needed to be taken down before it was far too late. Braixen ran forward nimbly, slashing her claws out. The purple streaks, controlled by her mind, sailed through the air. One hit Milotic dead on, giving Komala the chance to recover, slow as it was. The other two streaks aimed right for Lusamine, who didn't bother moving. They grazed her cheek, breaking into the throne of rock that was behind her. "That was our warning, Lusamine."

" _Your_  warning? Ha ha ha!" Lusamine began to cackle out, raising a hand to her mouth as she tipped her head back. Komala shook his head, indicating to Lillie that he was okay. In the background, Serena's other three Pokémon were moving into action with their strike against the Ultra Beasts. "This is  _my_  beautiful paradise that you're intruding upon. Allow me to give you my own warning! Ice Beam!"

"Primarina, Aqua Jet!" Serena shouted, throwing a fist forward. Primarina surrounded herself in water, swirling constantly and consistently around her figure, before blasting forward. Milotic cried out, sending the frigid beams straight out for her. They hit the tip of the water, but Serena wasn't concerned. She was already moving on to the next command. "Hidden Power!"

"Use Rollout and gather it around your body!" Lillie cried out. Lusamine's eyes flashed. It almost seemed like with every command Lillie gave, a piece of her mother grew more unrestrained and wild. Komala began to roll forward as Braixen's wand glowed silver and sent the multitude of orbs flying out. Primarina had turned into an iceberg now, on a straight course collision with Milotic, just as Ash had shown her with Buizel what seemed like ages ago, now. The attack hit home, causing Milotic to scream out from the blow.

"Aqua Ring," was Lusamine's command. A smirk began to stretch her face, yet it also flickered in and out, vacillating between confident and furious. On the ground, Komala's rolling had joined with the silvery orbs, circling and spinning around his figure as he bounced into the air. Three blue rings surrounded Milotic's body just as Komala struck it.

"Miloooooo!" Milotic screeched, sounding pained. Lusamine's smirk slipped into a scowl, the expression making it seem like half of her face was twisted opposite to the other. This was something she had clearly never counted on. Behind the blonde duo, standing close to each other, Bonnie and the other Pokémon were waging a war. The young girl was in the center, giving commands to Sylveon and Sandshrew, while Pancham punched one of them into the wall with Nebby's immense help.

"Go, Komala, right into Wood Hammer!"

"Koma!" Komala shouted, not even yawning out the cry as he spun out of Rollout. His wood chunk glowed a powerful green and he brought it spinning around in an attempt to slam down on Milotic's head.

"Ice Beam. Freeze that poisonous distraction," Lusamine spat. It was obvious what she had meant by "poisonous" to Serena. Anything that seemed to have made Lillie grow and become her own person was considered to be so. Milotic recovered with another flare of its orange aura, now glowing blue, as well. It rapidly shot the freezing rays out. They struck Komala, freezing him in place. Serena, however, decided that she wouldn't abandon Komala like that.

"Disarming Voice!" Serena shouted. Primarina skidded back on the ground, opening her mouth with a beautifully charming cry. The soundwaves blasted out, slightly larger than normal to account for the passion they all took in the battle. The ice on Komala's body began to flake and break while Lusamine was pushed back by the force of the sound. Milotic was more affected, leaving it wide open. "Fire Blast!"

"Braiiiiixen!" Braixen cried, spinning her wand and thrusting it forward. The star-shaped fire blasted out, quickly ripping through the air, like a phoenix that melted the ice surrounding Komala, before it barreled on in an attempt to hit the prone Milotic.

"Dragon Pulse!" Lusamine roared, looking furious at the state of things. Milotic did as asked, slithering along the ground just a foot before her maw lit up with purple. The dragon soared outward from her mouth, maw open wide like it would consume the flames. The two made contact, making an explosion resound through the air. Lillie was nearly blown backwards, the tie holding her ponytail together becoming undone. Lusamine almost froze, staring at the sight of Lillie's hair billowing outward.

"Wood Hammer with a spin!" the blonde cried, her hair whipping through the air. Komala once more bounded into the air, even in his sleeping state, spinning rapidly enough to finally strike Milotic with the powerful, green-glowing chunk of wood. Its head was slammed to the ground.

"Now, Bonnie! Rotom advises commencement of strategy!"

"Fairy Wind!" Bonnie yelled from behind the other battling girls. Suddenly a blast of powerful wind exploded like a tornado in the background. That same tornado lit with fiery passion as Nebby pounced into it with a blazing body of fire.

"Water Pulse! Take  _out_  that  _ugly creature_!" Lusamine screamed, stamping her foot on the ground. Every passing second looked to be driving the woman completely mad.

"Counter it with Sparkling Aria!" Serena yelled. Primarina and Milotic, both some of the most beautiful Pokémon, yet with such different trainers, reared back, summoning globes of water that they then chucked at one another. The two orbs met in midair, exploding with a rain that traveled through the space. "Flamethrower!"

"Sen!" Braixen called. Instead of using her wand this time, she opened her mouth, sending flames gushing forth to where the two orbs met. Steam billowed out as a result of it, and Serena looked to Lillie. The blonde nodded; battling Milotic wasn't going to change the real target that needed to be taken down. Serena began running forward, as Lillie tossed a hand out.

"Ice Beam!" Lusamine snapped. The steam was clearing easily enough, revealing the manic blonde, the confident smirk back on her face. There was no doubt as to why. Just like before, Serena's feet were swiftly encased in ice, preventing her from moving forward at all. "Well, now, I suppose it's time to end your miserable life the same way I ended Faba's. You're such an ugly influence. Lillie was beautifully adorable once upon a time, until she met all of you…Now, however, you are creatures that must be excised from  _my_  beautiful world. I don't need you.

"I don't love you."

"That doesn't matter!" Lillie shouted. She emerged from the steam, just as Komala did, rolling forward with extreme force. Lusamine's eyes burst wide as Komala bounded forward, knocking into Milotic and catapulting it into the air. "As long as  _we_  continue loving, mother, that's all that matters in the end. Maybe I was foolish to think I could save you from yourself…but…I won't let you hurt my family! Now, Serena!"

"Right! Braixen!" Serena cried, crossing her wrists as her Z-Ring glowed pink. The light burst as she began to move in accordance with their familiar Z-Move. Braixen glowed the same, and Milotic's body was suddenly controlled by her power before then being blasted forward, bouncing through the air, shattering the space around it. Braixen's final strike pierced it with the same pink glow, and drove it forward, just in time for its body to slam into Lusamine. The two hit the throne of rocks, crumbling it to pieces, though Serena's feet still couldn't move. Lillie ran forward.

"Just a moment, Serena," Lillie spoke. Her voice was trembling, the honey blonde noticed. For all the defiance she spoke, every word Lusamine had spoken had to have no doubt cut deeply inside her soul. That she couldn't save the mother she still hoped to love…

_Nuweeeee!_  Serena froze, though not from the ice, her heartbeat speeding up and her head growing slightly foggy. Behind them, Bonnie and the Pokémon fighting alongside her seemed to have knocked away all of the reinforcements, though other than Nebby, they were beginning to tire out, even as the lemon blonde dusted herself off confidently.

"There's…no need…to interfere…" Lusamine's voice spoke. The stones began to crumble away and the older woman stood, eyes lopsided while brimming with insanity. She looked down at her fallen Pokémon with a scowl and kicked at it, knocking it away without a shred of remorse. "Such ugliness…With every word you speak. Every action you take. You prove yourself less and less deserving of my love. But Nihilego, you are beauty incarnate. Perhaps you can be as my new Lillie in our world."

"Mother!" Lillie yelled, but Lusamine was too far gone. Hovering behind her were the writhing tentacles of the all too familiar Ultra Beast. The one that had attacked in Heahea City. The one that had been poisoning…no, simply aiding Lusamine in her insane ambitions. She knew all too well what she was doing. Even so, Serena had to wonder if she could be saved somehow, those momentary looks that she had given during the battle had possibly said so. Lillie dropped to her knees.

"Fairy Wind, Sylveon!" Bonnie called. Serena's eyes snapped open, and she looked to see that Bonnie was gripping at her own shoulder, driving pain into it to block out the toxins. Sylveon snapped her feelers forward, sending the pink wind through the air. Lusamine remained where she was standing, her hair flying outwards while Nihilego was battered before it began to sway forward like a menacing force. Serena, herself, fell to her knees, finding it hard to think.

"Go, Bonnie! Take it down!" Lillie suddenly screamed. "If you do…maybe…just maybe…"

"Leave it to us! We're Pokémon trainers!" Bonnie commanded. Purple waves began to radiate off of Nihilego's body, pushing all of them back, making Serena feel like she wanted to vomit. There were a few more Ultra Beasts emerging, the last vestiges of their forces in that world, but they were enough to draw Nebby's attention away.

"Bzzt! Bzzt! Bonnie, watch out!" Rotom cried, suddenly pressing down on Bonnie's head and bringing her low enough for the purple destructive waves to sail over her, avoiding her entirely. "Rotom has a new strategy to hold Nihilego in place!"

"Then let's do it!" Bonnie shouted, pushing back up as Nihilego's attacks finished. Lusamine remained rooted in her spot, scowling at Bonnie. "Powder Snow, Sandshrew!"

"Shreeeew!" Sandshrew squeaked out, opening his little mouth and sending the ice crystals over to the approaching Nihilego. It began to consume it, freezing up parts of its body the longer that Sandshrew kept it up. The tentacles were on the move, glowing a bright red.

"General Rotom into action! Dark Pulse and Swift to counter!" Rotom called. Bonnie was on her feet now, Rotom next to her as they both seemed to smirk in Nihilego's direction. Serena's head was starting to clear in time for her to see Pancham and Sylveon act in tandem. The dark swirl of energy hit one of the red beams firing out, while Sylveon's golden stars acted in a concentrated fashion to hit the other red beam, each of the attacks straining against one another. It was clear which side was losing, though.

"Let's be like Ash and Serena! Do this the way  _they_  battle! Pancham, Stone Edge!" Bonnie called, dropping to a knee and patting the ground with her hand. Pancham broke his attack off, crying out and flipping back to slam his own fist down. Stones erupted, and the Power Gem slammed into them, breaking only half of the bulwark off. Serena tried grabbing her foot out of the ice, but found she couldn't. She did, however, notice Dedenne scampering around the sides of the battlefield, unseen. Bonnie and Rotom certainly had a plan. Nihilego's body was pulsing once more, the purple waves shuddering out, much stronger and more powerful this time. They slammed into the rocks, breaking them to pieces. "Double Team!"

"Sylvie!" Sylveon howled, numerous copies of herself sprouting around the area swiftly. Rotom pointed forward, ordering an omnidirectional Swift. All of the Sylveon in the area sent stars cascading out, overwhelming the Ultra Beast with numbers as the golden stars battered it relentlessly.

"Now, Dedenne, Nuzzle!"

"Use Metal Claw, Sandshrew!" Rotom ordered. The two may have been smirking, truly working together for the first time, but Serena could see how serious they were taking the entire situation. Nihilego swung its tentacles around, snapping them like whips to clear away the copies of Sylveon. In the process, it hit the real one and knocked it aside, near where Nebby sent a roaring flame out at the remaining Ultra Beasts.

"Dene!" Dedenne called and Serena smiled as she saw it bound upwards and land easily atop Nihilego's head. Lusamine stepped forward, but Lillie threw her hand out, and Komala rolled forward, forcing the woman to lean back to avoid the attack. Dedenne rubbed his cheeks and slammed himself against Nihilego, causing it to twitch with sudden paralysis. Then Sandshrew came spinning forward, his claw glowing with a metallic sheen and slicing across the beast.

"And Parabolic Charge, full power!" Bonnie yelled, flinging her fist into the air. Dedenne began gathering the electricity all around his body while Bonnie's free hand went to her bag, in order to hold on to Squishy and Bluey there. They had recovered, but in a space without any Zygarde Cells, they were unable to do anything but cheer their current companion on to victory. The orb sailed out from Dedenne's body and then plummeted right downward with the force of electricity that consumed Nihilego's entire body. It was soon joined by Nebby's flame rapidly licking across it with ferocity from his position.

The attack soon finished, Dedenne jumping back over to Bonnie, who gave a high five and a wink to Rotom. Nihilego fell, slamming upon the ground. Lusamine twitched, her face rippling with anger. "Rotom and Bonnie are successful!"

"We did it!" Bonnie said, giving a little twirl. Dedenne looked exhausted, and Serena noted that her own Pokémon weren't looking much better from the battle. Lillie stepped away, bringing herself back up as Serena noticed that her feet had been freed. The blonde began approaching her mother.

_"Did you now, little girl?"_  Serena's heart felt like it stopped, as did Lillie's, judging by the ceasing of her motion forward. Bonnie did, as well, though Rotom remained less affected, swiveling around to wonder what was going on.  _"How naïve…this is_ my _domain!"_

_Nuweeeeeeeeeee!_  Nihilego was back up, tentacles pointing with a powerful red glow for Bonnie, the others aimed for Serena's Pokémon. The latter fired first, blasting upon them without remorse, so quickly there was no chance for counter. All three fell and Serena called them back as a blue and orange glow surrounded Nihilego. Then the middle Power Gem fired. Bonnie opened her mouth to call for a counterattack, but it was too fast.

"Bonnie!" Serena's eyes widened, watching as everything seemed to move so quickly, yet in slow motion. Rotom zipped forward through the air, placing itself between Bonnie and the incoming attack. Bonnie's eyes widened, tears springing up before it even happened. "Bonnie! Rotom enjoyed pranking you, and doing pranks with you! Rotom had lots of fun, thanks to you! The best of times! And Rotom…I love you very much."

"No…" Serena breathed, and the attack blasted into the Pokédex. There was no sound, from either a scream or the wrenching of parts. It was ripped apart, scattering into a million pieces. The screen went dark, and the last lingering sparks that seemed to be Rotom's life and body fizzled out before their very eyes, vanishing into the air with a sad smile of farewell, while what remained of its former Pokédex body skidded across the ground. All that appeared to remain were the remnants of a backup memory bank; just a small drive, as large as a finger.

"ROTOM!" Bonnie screamed. No response was heard, and Nihilego was moving. Serena wrenched her feet free and ran right at the beast that had just destroyed one of their friends. Bonnie had fallen to her knees, gripping at the last of Rotom's memory on the ground, right before Nihilego turned. Serena hadn't expected the swiftness as the tentacle slammed into her chest. She felt her whole body receive the blow, and then she flew backwards, right through the air, pain erupting across her chest, feeling like something may have broken.

"Not today! Everyone, go!" Serena's eyes snapped open, recognizing the voice as Ash's. Suddenly, she landed in someone's arms as screams and roars filled the air, followed by the sounds of explosions. "Serena, you okay?"

"Ash…you made it. Just in time," she said weakly, still wheezing from the blow she had just taken. Ash took her gingerly and brought her up, supporting her despite the wincing. She looked back to Bonnie, still in shock over the fact that Rotom had sacrificed its life to save her. Clemont was approaching his sister, and Serena now noticed that everyone was attacking Nihilego with force. Pikachu brought down an Iron Tail, Incineroar slashed with shadowy claws and Team Rocket attacked from afar, all of their attacks combining to bring it down.

"Rotom…Rotom, he…" Bonnie said, her body shaking. Ash's eyes widened. Clemont, meanwhile, bent down to help his sister up. Her eyes suddenly flashed angrily. "She killed him…This is all that's left of him now…She…"

"Lusamine!" Gladion roared. Ash stepped forward, Serena going with him when she saw a surprising presence in the form of Guzma. "It's over now, mother!"

"Mother? I don't recall ever having something such as yourself for a son," Lusamine scoffed out. Nihilego flopped upon the ground, twitching. Lusamine looked at it with anger, though it had nothing on Bonnie and Dedenne's return look. A great rush of wings indicated Serena to Lunala's arrival. "And now look what you've done…destroyed such a beautiful creature."

"Yeah, well the ugliest one is right in front of me," Gladion spat at her, holding his hand up to point right at her. "We're not your playthings. The world isn't either. So, leave it the hell alone."

"It's over, mother, just like he said," Lillie spoke, clearly and concisely. Every one of them moved forward, their Pokémon all returning to their sides. Like a large force, they stood their ground against the woman. She surveyed them all, catching sight of Guzma. "You won't take from anyone else. You won't manipulate us further. I…I'm going to make sure of that!"

"Are you, now, Lillie? And what about you, Guzma? Is my brave knight not going to protect my honor?" Lusamine asked, placing a finger on her lips coyly. Serena turned, seeing the leader of Team Skull shudder, his clenched fist trembling horribly.

"I…I…" Guzma said, until his head snapped up, looking at Lusamine with his own twitching lips. "I won't, Lusamine."

"What?" she asked flatly. Guzma stepped forward.

"We don' gotta do this! We…I got people waitin' for me outside. If we destroy the world, then they…"

"So what?" Lusamine cackled out, her smirk ever-wide. "What are they but inconsequential weeds? Why should we not be afraid to trample over them? Sentiment is for the weak! Or do you plan to defy me like all the others, you useless man? !"

_"That is enough, Lusamine…"_  The same voice from earlier entered Serena's head again, and she knew that everyone there heard it just the same. Hau and Team Rocket were already looking around rapidly, while Bonnie stowed the last remnants of Rotom's memory in her bag. Clemont gripped her tight, the siblings shaking with suppressed rage over their fallen friend, its components dead on the ground.  _"You have brought it all far enough. The pieces are in play, at last. Our world of paradise is nigh."_

Lusamine's face stretched into an even more catlike smile and Serena's eyes blossomed with horror. Behind her was a shadow, one that made Nebby and Lunala growl and screech. It almost seemed to have no substance, yet was slowly forming into one; one that reflected light. It was a void of space and light, like a prism. And once its abominable body had formed, Lusamine spoke its name with near reverence. "Necrozma."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Yes. I killed Rotom. Am I an asshole? Probably. However, don't worry about it. I mean, Rotom is dead from that attack, no doubt, but I included the backup memory for a reason. I'll just say that for now. There just needed to be a casualty for the good guys in this battle, and it was obvious that the mains were going to survive. Yeah, it wasn't this huge buildup or long death scene, but it's a nice contrast to some of my past ones in that way; hopefully came as a shock. Otherwise, there were a lot of things going on. I rather enjoyed writing Guzma's memories with the depiction, so hopefully you could picture it as artistically as I did.
> 
> Then there was the battle with Lusamine. Probably not the best, but nor was it meant to be. Bonnie got her shining moment, as did Rotom with his finality. And yes, the "I love you" instead of "Rotom loves you" was deliberate (obviously). Gives Bonnie a good reason to fight, as Lusamine really shows off her insanity, tossing even Guzma to the side. Then we have Necrozma. Obviously, I hinted at Necrozma, and this will be my own take on it, since at the time of writing and planning the trilogy, we knew nothing about it. I think it'll work out for all of you!
> 
> We're close now! The final battle is practically here! So get ready, and also Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	28. A Dreaded

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here we are. The final battle is nigh. Hopefully you all enjoy and leave a review on it! Time for Chapter 28!

Chapter 28

A Dreaded

"Everyone, close ranks! Pull back to the portal!" Alain swiveled his head from the air, riding atop the back of Charizard alongside Mairin, who was gripping to him. He looked down to the altar, where Lionel had arrived, he and his Banette beating back some of the Ultra Beasts that were daring to draw near to the portal so they could join their comrades inside at full strength. Mairin tapped at him.

"Come on, Alain," the girl said. He nodded wordlessly and Charizard immediately understood the implications. He angled downward, the blue fire from his maw jetting outwards. Alain wasn't the only one moving into position. There were plenty of others flying their way, closing in on the portal that Ash and the others had escaped into some time ago. In seconds, however, he had been one of the first ones to reach the top of the altar, Charizard breaking up some of the stones as he landed. Alain grabbed Mairin and hopped off.

"Charizard, Blast Burn!" he roared, punching towards the ground with his natural ferocity. Charizard mimicked him, punching down on the actual stone. It burned with fire and shot across, ripping away some of the rocky material. Thankfully, there wasn't a problem with destroying such a venerated site, since much of the altar and the canyon around them seemed to be disintegrating bit by bit from their location's connection to the Ultra Space…or perhaps just what lay in it. Regardless, Charizard's fire shot out towards some of the speedier Ultra Beasts. It impacted with one of them, exploding and sending all of them flying into the air.

"Sceptile, Frenzy Plant!" came the familiar voice. Alain, having fully landed safely and regaining his balance, turned to see that Sawyer and Seamus had arrived, along with the rest of the group called Team Nova. Alakazam's eyes were glowing blue, holding the Ultra Beasts in the air while the roots ripped at the stones they were upon in order to beat the beasts away rapidly. It was a slight dent in the enemy forces. Very slight.

"Man, do these things keep attacking or what?" called another voice, this one on the stairs. Alain ran towards it, noticing that some of those Team Skull members were hanging off of the side, as more and more of the steps disintegrated underneath their feet. Things would really become a problem if the whole altar shrunk. They'd have far less means to defend the area were that to happen. Not that it was Team Skull speaking, but one of Ash's friends, instead. "Blaziken, Blaze Kick! You want to join, Mr. Meyer?"

"Don't mind if I do, young lady," Alain heard of the familiar voice. There was an explosion down the stairs, like a jetting rocket going off and knocking a whole herd of Ultra Beasts away.

"Well, with you guys here, there's no need to worry!" Dawn spoke. Alain had started to recognize that catchphrase anywhere, something which amused him. Mairin ran over to where Lionel and a few others were, including Plumeria, both the Team Skull admin and the leader of ARC standing back to back.

"Stop dawdling! This is a fight! Torterra, Stone Edge!"

"Do you  _always_  have to be so sour? I mean, you haven't lightened up after how many years?" Finally, the owners of the voices all drew into vision, running up the slowly crumbling stairs. The ground shuddered a bit, even more of the stairs disintegrating, forcing the group that contained Dawn, May, Meyer and Paul to leap over the steps and on to the altar proper. In fact, most of their forces were being pushed or pulled back to the altar at this point. Only the Champions seemed to still be holding off the air, along with Latias, surprisingly still Mega Evolved despite Ash's absence.

"Stop arguing, Dawn. Now isn't the best time for it," came the stern tones of Brock. He was the next to be running up the stairs, his Croagunk moving stealthily enough to slam one of the sparking Ultra Beasts off the stairs with a Brick Break. Near his side, Aria was sending a Mystical Fire down the steps, and the girl that had joined them during the League, Maka, seemed to be giving support with Helping Hand to Korrina's Lucario and Aria's Delphox.

"Maybe not, but now I have an awesome idea for the ending climax of my movie! Just need the kissing shot in the heat of battle!" Maka said cheerfully. With the Oricorio support, Delphox's Mystical Fire grew much more powerful, exploding down the stairs as an inferno. Further down, as Alain could see while he pulled a Skull grunt up from the edge of the altar, itself, more of Ash's old friends and the woman named Hapu were battling their way up the crumbling stairs. Another shudder almost threw Alain off balance while he heaved upwards.

"Yo, thanks, bro! You real cool!" the grunt said, turning around to help his fellow compatriots up. Alain was turning away already, looking towards the group of Brock's.

"Well, I've got no problem providing a kissing scene for you if you need it," the man said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively at Aria. His Croagunk raised a poison laced fist. "Or some other time. Definitely some other time."

"Never change, Brock," Dawn laughed out alongside May.

"Stop dawdling!" Lionel and Plumeria snapped at the same time, each yelling at their own people. That made the girls jump, while Paul shook his head. Everyone started drawing inward at last. The altar shook, a wrenching sound going off loudly. Alain almost lost his balance, only finding it by Mairin and one of the guys from Team Nova (was certain his name was Rocky) holding him up.

"That did not sound very cool," Rocky spoke as everyone looked around worriedly. As if to make matters much worse than they were already, a most unwelcome sound assailed Alain's ears.

_Guzzuzzuzzzuzzuzz._  Everyone there had to have heard it, as well, and they looked up. It was still dark out, though the sky was lightening towards daybreak. He hadn't even noticed that it had been hours since Ash and the others had entered the portal they were defending. That job was about to get a lot harder as a very large Ultra Beast slammed into the center of the altar, between the two daises, flailing around with its inky black tentacles.

"So, there are more of you, huh?" called the man that Alain had met when they gathered at Lanakila upon arrival to Alola. He had a grin on his lips, wiping something that was on his chin (which looked a lot like blood) on to his hand. His Persian, or so Alain assumed it was, stalked forward with the same kind of expression as its trainer.

"Nanu, cut it out! We don't have time to indulge your love for battles," Lionel snapped at the man. The Kahuna didn't care, grinning all the more from Lionel's request. He did, however, throw his head high.

"Hey, Team Skull! You want to have something to write home about? This is your moment!" Nanu cried out, voice echoing all around the canyon. Many of the grunts that were there froze and looked at him in surprise. "Who cares what the trials have said about you! You take this down, you'll have been more useful than half the people that finished them! To hell with the system! Saving the people around you is what's worth livin' for!"

"Big Bro Nanu!" they called. The Kahuna scowled at being called that but pointed straight at the large and bulky Ultra Beast. They got the order, and all of the members of Team Skull leapt right at it, battering the creature with all the attacks they could muster as a team. Small pocket explosions and quick-flying strikes slammed the beast's body, even as its tentacles whipped around and knocked some of the Pokémon away. They were rapidly replaced as the battle continued. Alain just pulled back, coming closer to Lionel, who shook his head in amusement. Plumeria actually looked proud.

"Those adorable idiots," she chuckled out. "Looks like we'll have something to tell the boss about when this is all over. So, let's make sure he gets out of here safely!"

"You got it, Big Sis!" Plumeria's words, in conjunction with Nanu's earlier ones, seemed to light a fire inside all of the members of Team Skull there. Alain's eyes widened as he was joined with all of the others, including the less recognizable members of Ash's friend group (he knew their names were Misty, Cilan and Iris, and they were proving themselves strong, but he knew little else). They were all clustered now, as Alain watched Nanu cross his arms with those Z-Move poses which he'd seen in action during the League.

"Black Hole Eclipse!" the Kahuna called and all of Team Skull moved away from the slumping Ultra Beast. Persian stalked forward, forming a large black orb of energy that it fired straight ahead. It collided with the Ultra Beast, and the creature was lifted up into it as it grew and grew before the orb consumed it entirely. There was a brief moment of silence, and then the orb exploded around the Ultra Beast in wisps of shadow. Nanu smirked. "Go back to hell, beast. Stay in your nothingness."

"Aw, yeah! Team Skull is…THE GREATEST!" the band of thugs cheered out, clearly giddy over the victory they had managed to secure. It was a reminder to Alain of how much working together mattered. If that happened, it didn't matter how strong you were, because you would always find a way out of situations.

"They're starting to thin, it seems," Plumeria commented, making everyone look upwards, to the attacking army. They were definitely moving closer to sunrise now. Plumeria's comment was also true, with less and less of the beasts assaulting them at this point. Alain could only hope that all of the towns throughout the world, and especially this region, were weathering the assault, as well. They weren't done, though. Each of their own army was clustered on the altar, and the force of the Ultra Beasts was now converging upon them.

"One last push, everyone!" Lionel demanded, shuffling his foot along the ground. "Let's make sure our world is still here when Ash and the others come back."

"Yeah!" Brock led the others in cheering. The dam broke, the Ultra Beasts in the sky descending upon them. Alain honestly couldn't even remember giving his order. All he remembered was that he was in the thick of battle once more, protecting what was dearest to him. Charizard, Sceptile and Alakazam joined forces, then Chespie was battling alongside Piplup. To the side was a combination of a Rhyperior and Astrid's Absol. It was like chaos on the altar's top.

There was a bright light glimmering in the distance, through the portal. To Alain, catching sight of it, it felt like it was a beacon. Calling out, while also giving them courage and the zeal to continue forward. Even now, Ash was pushing them all forward in the way that only he knew. It gave Alain something to look forward to: the day they'd battle again. He had a feeling the result would be  _very_  different then.

_Kauuuuuuuuu!_  The great cry split the air like tribal sounds. Lightning was flashing across the sky as four colored lights came soaring back towards the center of the island's canyon, drilling down. From the lead one flew electricity that turned from yellow to purple. The other three behind it were also letting off the purple power, though not quite electricity, as they zapped the Ultra Beasts out of the air.  _Kokokokoko!_

"The guardian deities…" Hapu commented in what sounded like awe, having finally reached the top of the stairs, supporting Mina. Said deities soared downward, righting themselves as they skirted along the flat surface of the altar. Alain then heard a voice in his head, sounding like four at once. He wasn't alone in that.

_Take courage, humans! Our battle is almost done! We shall land the final blow in this war and make safe Alola! Come, we have been summoned!_

The four turned into bright, differently colored streaks of light that shot into the portal they had all been protecting, vanishing inside. The Ultra Beasts seemed to stop a moment, twitching. Then they screeched loudly, as if sent into a frenzy. Alain's eyes widened and he made sure that Mairin was as close to him as could be.

"They're like wounded, dying animals now…I don't know what Ash and the others did, but it's sure as heck working! It might make them more dangerous, though, so be careful!" Alain yelled out to everyone around him. They all heard him, but didn't respond given the viciously charging Ultra Beasts now cascading upon them with loud screeches.

"Then we end it!" Lionel said coldly. "One last push. Give Ash the support he needs, and they'll take care of the rest from inside." Alain nodded, readying his body for the last fight, silently wishing for Ash to return safely and end the battle. Soon.

* * *

"That's the thing I was telling ya about," Guzma's voice called out. There was still no echo in the space, and Ash refused to turn his head to look at the man. He was simply too fixated by what had manifested behind Lusamine. The woman was smirking, as though she had been waiting for this moment a long time. Ash's eyes quickly scanned the area, looking at his friends, including a furious Bonnie, all standing with him. Nihilego was on the ground, twitching. "That…shadow."

_"The Dreaded One…Necrozma,"_  Lunala answered. Her voice seemed strained, either from some earlier exertion, or possibly even holding back her own fury towards what was before them. Ash couldn't quite understand what a Necrozma  _was_  to begin with.

"Wait… _this_  is the one you were talking about?" Clemont shouted out. Gladion was taking a step forward, looking ready to jump straight into a battle against the creature. The shadow, having now taken what seemed to be a somewhat corporeal form, flashed brightly and Ash held his arm out, stopping his friend from making a mistake.

_"Yes,"_  Nebby grumbled out. He, too, sounded strained, and Ash had to wonder. Necrozma, fully formed with its jagged edges, looked to almost be shining, as though basking in the sun on one side, and glowing in the moon on the other. However, it seemed less to be absorbing it and more refracting it, as though reaching for the light, but never quite grasping it. Ash shook his head, wondering just what was going on in that moment.  _"It is the void of our power…the one who imprisoned us. Trapped us in that endless void."_

_"Imprisoned?"_  Necrozma questioned. Its voice sounded low, guttural, shuddering and sent a shiver down all of their spines. Serena gripped at Ash's hand in what felt like fear. Necrozma floated forward. There was no expression on its visage, making it all the more eerie.  _"Backwards…utterly backwards. I simply held thrall to your power. Made it mine! Yet it imprisoned me here!"_

_"Necrozma is the void space of our power,"_  Lunala spoke, cutting across the fiendish monster that was in front of them. Ash swallowed, feeling the dreadful aura that spilled off of its figure. It really did look empty. No wonder it could reflect all light that it tried to take in.  _"Once, we were one. One Cosmog born from our predecessors. Then, as we grew and matured inside the Ultra Space, its sovereign rulers, we began to split into two beings of immense power, not having yet changed forms."_

_"However, all power begets a void of power elsewhere,"_  Nebby continued on. He sounded wistful, almost sad.  _"I took the power of the sun, and Lunala, that of the moon."_

_"Yet what of the thing that remained between?"_  Necrozma asked. The voice was dreadful and threatening; fear-inducing. For a moment, Ash felt like he had been rooted to the spot he was standing upon, unable to take but a single step forward.  _"It took form. The eclipse. Void of all light."_

"Like a prism…" Gladion spat out, and Ash noticed that he was unable to move as well. Regardless, things were starting to make sense. Bubbles rippled around the walls of the Ultra Space that were surrounding them there, and Ash took a breath in. He was afraid to look; afraid to see just what was inside.

_"Necrozma. Death incarnate. Darkness incarnate. A manifestation of the eclipse caused by the moon and the sun,"_  Nebby continued. He suddenly gasped, the majestic lion dropping to a knee from what appeared to be some sense of pain. Ash's eyes widened, not fully understanding just what was happening to him. He wasn't the only one. Lunala was hovering lower, now.  _"Our darkness, as it were. Long have we sought to keep him contained here in the Ultra Space, but our tiny forms lacked the strength..."_

_"A folly on your part,"_  Necrozma spoke. As it floated forward, Lusamine walked with it, a smirk on her face as she, also, began to explain things to them, like she was chiding children. Guzma seemed unable to talk from her presence.

"By sealing Necrozma in the Ultra Space they created a balance of power to support it," she offered to them. That she was dispensing with the information only told Ash a singular thing: them knowing all of this didn't matter any longer. The bloodlust radiated off of her, concealed behind her smirk. "And then the storm came."

_"Yes…that capricious wind…the man with honey hair and an aura of destruction. What a boon he was. Interesting…for a human,"_  Necrozma chuckled out. Ash remained focused upon the creature as it seemingly phased in and out of reality, flickering eerily for a time. Ash swallowed once more. There was only one man that fit that description, one that he knew quite well. Finally, Ash looked up to one of the bubbles which had formed, and stared inside.

It was exactly as he expected, the image of Michael, just as he remembered, stood there at the Lake of the Moone. In his hands was the Moon Flute. To Ash, it felt like that memory, clearly a sharp one within the Ultra Space, took over everything, consuming all of them as the man that was Reeree's father raised the flute to his lips and played. It was sharp, and cruel; not at all beautiful. And when his lips stopped playing, darkness burst from the center of the dais there, as though it were a great flood that had been held back.

"So…you were sealed here. The tomes were right," Michael chuckled out, moving his fake glasses up his nose with a chuckle. He looked amused by it. "You seek freedom, being disposable. I can give you it! Pour your darkness out! Destroy this world!"

Ash watched in horror as the scene from six years ago played out. The darkness that was Necrozma attempted to gain freedom, reaching for their world, yet it was held back by the power of the two Cosmog, deep in the abyss. Michael watched the occurrence, grinning madly, like his lifelong dream had occurred.

_"Unfortunately, he had acted prematurely, and without all the given information…yet he cared not for the damage that it would bring, then or now,"_  Necrozma seemed to narrate. The memory continued to play out as though it were on a film reel, playing quickly in order to sear itself into Ash's eyes. How the two Cosmog were separated by Necrozma's attempt to break free. Yet in the meantime, their separation managed to close the portal off, only the prime Nihilego and Nebby remaining outside of it. The darkness was contained, yet so much of the essence that made Necrozma remained.  _"I was split…tied inexorably to the Ultra Space, and yet much of me had emerged to wreak havoc, rooted in but a few pockets of space."_

"And so, a plan was set in motion.  _Our_  plan," Lusamine finished for Necrozma. She stopped, flicking her voluminous hair outwards with her ever-present smirk as she regarded them all. "Thanks to those meddlesome efforts from both of the Cosmog, the portal to get in and out of the Ultra Space, this wonderful place of colliding worlds, was sealed. The Moon Flute broke, of course, further complicating matters."

"No…" Clemont breathed, as though he'd reached some horrible realization that none of the others had yet come to. "No…that's…he…"

_"Yessssss…"_  Necrozma hissed, sounding almost giddy from confirming Clemont's fear. The memory before them all faded away, just as Michael had grabbed hold of Nebby, and seemed to begin speaking to Nihilego. His words were what finally made Ash's eyes widen with such abject horror that he simply couldn't hold his anger back.

"I know what it's like…to have this filthy world take everything from your own," Michael spoke, grinning at Nihilego. He didn't look affected in the slightest by the creature's toxins. It further cemented the fact of just what kind of person Michael was: just like Necrozma, void of any and all light inside, seeking everything and anything to make his  _own_  wish a reality, and damn everyone else. "I know a way you can take it back. It would take time, but this world will crumble, and you will take it all for yourself, I guarantee it."

"He…you…" Serena was gasping out. Team Rocket were looking at each other in confusion, just the same as Hau, who shrugged at them with the same sense of cluelessness. Bonnie was shaking, while Gladion and Lillie looked to each other. They had obviously figured out that this was the man that had changed their entire lives; poisoned their mother in more ways than one. Turned her into a beast all of her own accord. It sickened both Ash and Serena together. "This whole time, it was all part of  _his_  plan."

_"Of course it was,"_  Lunala spoke, almost spitting the sentiment out, sounding furious at the void of space.  _"Necrozma is naught but destruction. A void that consumes what it will and disposes of the rest. While we remained, it was held in check, though over time, even we could not defend against the detritus that we had picked up in this space."_

_"Necrozma's power grew, and eventually, it became one with the Ultra Space, and our power could no longer hold it in place,"_  Nebby said furiously, shaking almost as much as Bonnie was. Necrozma and Lusamine stopped their approach, the latter still smirking confidently at all of them, as though she'd managed quite the victory. Ash's fist clenched angrily, yet still he felt like his feet were unable to move.  _"When that day came, we expended ourselves and were separated, as you well know. But Necrozma lingered on, ever growing in power."_

_"And manufactured your own demise!"_  Necrozma boomed through the space. Ash looked to it, still unreadable from its void-like state, along with the fact that it continued to phase in and out of reality. It was trying to hold on, almost like it wanted to separate itself from the Ultra Space. Clemont breathed out, clearly noticing it as well. The prism continued to speak, however, keeping Ash fixated on it, in case it decided to suddenly strike back for whatever reason. At the very least, Ash could hear Clemont's mind whirring furiously with his thoughts.  _"I_ do _have to thank you, however…working as predictably as Michael and Lusamine's plan said you would."_

"Strife begets heroism. Heroism beckons the Tapus, calls them to order," Lusamine chuckled out. "When Michael acted six years ago, the Tapus were moved, and he knew then that in order to truly open the portal, to restore the Cosmog's power so that Solgaleo and Lunala could both be brought back to here, that new champions would need to be called again. So, the plan was to wait, and study, and ensure that all went as planned. It worked out  _perfectly_."

"This was all a long game, then, wasn't it, mother?" Gladion shouted at her. Lillie looked to be quaking with her own sense of anger now. "You planned for six years to destroy our world for what? You manipulated us! Abused us! Cast everyone aside like they were tools for all this stupid crap!"

"That's all it was this whole time," Lillie breathed out. "You kept us there, under your thumb, because you  _knew_  what was going to happen. What he was trying to do, and you  _let_  him."

"You misunderstand, Lillie. I was going to take you into this beautiful world, where we could be a family again. It was going to be perfect," the woman said with a simpering tone, cocking her hips to the same side as her uplifted smirk. "Until this  _thing_  left, and then you got too sentimentally attached to our subject. Although, once that happened, it simply required a change in plans, and a bit of manipulation was necessary. Now, though, it hardly matters. Thanks to stirring things, Solgaleo and Lunala are here now."

_"And at last our power is in balance…well, but for one mistake,"_  Necrozma breathed, sounding proud and accomplished in the moment. If Ash could have associated a look with the beast, it would have been the same expression as the one he saw sitting on Lusamine's face, hard as it was to tell.

"You're tied to the Ultra Space," Clemont remarked. His finger flew forward, pointing towards the phasing Necrozma. He stepped out as well, showing no fear in the face of this monster. It stirred up the courage inside of Ash, and he stepped forward, as well, the rest of the line moving boldly with him. "That's the real reason that you needed them here. As long as they're in the Ultra Space, you can begin absorbing their powers. But it leaves you with an even bigger weakness.

"As long as you're tied to it, we just need to bring  _you_  down!"

_"Foolish sentiment! I have become the Ultra Space! The rivers, the memories, their power, the Beasts themselves are all_ mine _! And once I take all that these two have to give, and devour your world, at last I will have my free world! Mine! No other!"_

"Oh, shut up already," Hau said, throwing his hands behind his head. "You keep talking about all this freedom stuff, but you're forgetting a pretty big detail, buddy." Lusamine's smirk dropped, as she considered Hau with a sense of disdain. The boy was just continuing to grin in the face of that. Team Rocket picked up the slack.

"You can have all the power in the world, bozo, but you still have to deal with us!"

"And we're not letting you take the world! That's for Team Rocket, you hear?"

"So, let's do dis, twoips!"

_"Such petulance…I am Necrozma! I am the Ultra Space! Your world is to be naught but a pile of darkness and ashes, its light gone, blending its memories with those of mine! Perfection!"_

"Perfection!" Lusamine cried at the same time, her voice practically blending with Necrozma's. It told Ash everything he needed to know. If the longer their own group stayed in the Ultra Space, the more powerful Necrozma grew…then, they would just have to destroy the creature before it could grow so powerful that it would consume their world. "Long have I worked for this, that perfect world of mine. Our partnership has been most fruitful."

"Your partnership with that thing, huh?" Guzma asked, pushing past their line, Golisopod weakly alongside him as he stared down the woman that had so controlled him, the same as her children. Lillie and Gladion were already in battle stances. "So, that's what it is, huh, Lusamine? You manipulated me and my brats for this? For a lie?"

"It wasn't a lie, Guzma," Lusamine said, still simpering. "I truly did admire your strength. Without it, I'd have never gotten this far. But there's no need for any further clutter in my world. Simple. Beautiful. Empty. You, my dear, stupid oaf, just don't fit that."

"I don't, huh…?" Guzma breathed out. He looked down for a moment, his fists shaking, before snapping his head up and glaring at Lusamine with a scowl. "That's fine with me. I'd rather live in a world with my boys an' girls, than in a world with nothin' in it! At least I didn't throw away my family!"

"What is family but a meaningless concept? We'll be able to create anything we want, or nothing at all! There is such beauty in that!" Lusamine said, her arms spreading wide as her psychotic grin blossomed further. "I need nothing else! I want nothing else! Necrozma desires the same!"

_"In nothingness, true freedom awaits! Total null! Total void of the light, just as I am! Now, Solgaleo, Lunala, return to me, and all we desire will be ours!"_

"Mother!" Lillie shouted, walking forward as well. Pikachu cried out, like he sensed danger, and Ash advanced, stopping her from approaching the woman. He also pulled back on Guzma as the substantiated form that was Necrozma began to melt away again, becoming wispy, just as it had when it was a shadow, in the memory. That darkness seeped across the floor, enveloping Lusamine and Nihilego both.

"What is…going on…?" Serena gasped.

_"Come…return to the void! To that wish of nothing!"_  Lusamine's voice was mixed in with Necrozma's, like a blending of personalities that was frightening to the heart and mind. Bonnie cried out softly, appropriately freaked out by the sight. She definitely wasn't the only one. Ash could only stare at the swirling darkness, tying all three of the individuals together. Lusamine began to laugh, her voice mixed with Necrozma's.

"They're…they're fusing!" Bonnie yelled out, and Clemont grabbed her. All of their Pokémon turned around and clasped on to their trainers as the darkness blasted outward.

_"Gah!"_  shouted Nebby, and Ash turned his head, peering through a crack in his Pokémon to see that the lion was suddenly held thrall by the darkness. Necrozma was truly planning to absorb them. Hau was shouting out for Lunala, indicating that the same thing was occurring with her. Lillie was screaming for her mother, but Ash held her fast until the darkness was sucked inwards, vanishing into a void of silence. There were a few seconds of nothing but the sound of breathing. Ash looked up as his Pokémon pulled away.

"Nebby!" Lillie cried. Sure enough, both Nebby and Lunala were restrained by black orbs, unable to do anything; they couldn't even attempt to break free. Ash snapped his gaze over to where their enemies had once been, seeing the most horrifying vision appear before him. Tentacles waving around like an enormous black jellyfish, long and threatening. In the center of the undulating bubble that would be the jellyfish's head was Lusamine, the smirk still on her face and her hair black. On top of it, the beast before them was huge, dwarfing all of them in size and presence. Had Ash been ignorant, he'd have said that Lusamine had lost all sense of self. Maybe in some part, she had, but if that were true, it meant that the only way to break through to her… "Mother! Mother!"

"That thing isn't our mother…hasn't been our mother a long time!" Gladion spat out. The jellyfish floated down, casting a shadow over all of them and letting out an ominous laugh that would have chilled Ash to the core. However, he didn't let it. There were things he needed to protect. "She's just a beast now!"

"A beast, Gladion?" Lusamine's voice echoed, still fused with Necrozma's. "I like the sound of that. The Motherbeast. That's how you view me, is it not? Now, be a good boy for once in your life…and do what your mother tells you. Fade into  _nothingness_."

"I think we'll pass!" Ash shouted. He let go of Lillie, now, and stepped forward. Serena moved forward, tossing his hat forward from her bag, and he caught it, placing it on his head with a glare in Lusamine's direction. "You want a world of nothingness, then you can join Michael where he went for his trouble! This is  _our_  world we're fighting for, and we won't let you have it. Not for a single second!"

"Chupika!" Pikachu called out, leading all of his Pokémon forward furiously to stand at his side. They weren't alone, everyone facing the Motherbeast before them. Ash raised his fist, all of his allies and himself prepared for the battle that would make or break everything.

"You want your world? Then stop trying to destroy things to do it. 'Cause we'll just do the same as we've always done and put an end to you!" he declared. If Lusamine was affected, or cared, she didn't show it. The tentacles rose up and two large orbs appeared: one a fiery inferno, the other a pale moon. They glowed brightly, pulsing as Lusamine smirked at them from within the large bubble, her feet as tentacles down below. She was beyond words. "Everyone! This is it! Our final battle!"

"Let's do it!" Hau said, grinning wildly. Everyone stepped forward. The Motherbeast hovered there, no more words spoken, like their individualities, their very identities, were being stripped away and dissolving into the nothingness they so craved. But Ash wasn't giving in, and nor were the people standing next to him; even Lillie, who straightened her back.

"Very well, mother. I'm sorry, but this is the end," she said. Then she slipped her backpack off. They were all ready. The Motherbeast struck. Lillie spoke first. "Everyone, scatter! Don't stay in the same place!"

From the brightly glowing tentacles, there emerged a silver glow, summoning orbs that were like metal balls. It gave a horrific screeching sound and then fired. Ash grabbed Lillie and Guzma both, tossing them both to the floor with himself, while the others scattered. The attacks blasted all over the place, absorbed by the walls, and Ash looked up to see his Pokémon were all fine…relatively speaking.

"Greninja, Water Shuriken! Aim for the top!" Ash yelled. He could feel Greninja move, grabbing for his giant shuriken and tossing it right for the shell where Lusamine was enclosed. Ash watched, waiting to see what would happen. The shuriken struck, and bounced off instantly. A loud laugh resounded from Lusamine's figure as one of her tentacles whipped out, slamming into Greninja's chest and knocking him aside. Ash winced.

"Are you all right?" Lillie asked, placing a hand on his back. Guzma and his Golisopod were wheezing, still exhausted from the earlier fight, while Ash nodded.

"Just fine. Guzma, stay down!"

"No way, kid! I didn't defy the president just for you to-"

"Stay down, Guzma! Silvally, Iron Head!" Gladion roared. Ash twisted his body to see Silvally charging full force for their opponent, gleaming in silver. It struck head on, just in time for Inkay to soar out and cut with a Psybeam all along its surface. Lusamine's laughter told Ash all the good that it was doing. Ash pushed himself up, helping Lillie do the same, and the two nodded.

"Komala, Rollout!" Lillie roared out. Her eyes flicked over to Nebby, and even Ash grit his teeth. They looked to be in pain, held fast and as if their very energy was being sucked dry. This was going to become a race of time. In fact, as he stood, he saw that the space they were in seemed to be growing…bigger.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash yelled, throwing his hand out. He wasn't the only one ordering for a bolt of lightning to be sent the Motherbeast's way.

"Pipi, you, too! Charge it up!"

"Vikavolt, join them with Charge Beam!" Pikachu sped along the ground while his companions all zipped forward swiftly, cutting through the air. The Motherbeast's tentacles whipped out, but all three were ready for the inevitable assault. Pikachu jumped upwards, over one of the lower tentacles, while the others flew to the side. "Now! Luxray, Bunnelby, get ready with Wild Charge!"

"Lux-ray!" Luxray howled. He started running forward. The rest of the trainers were drawing closer in a cluster, each of them observing the Motherbeast's rather unruly movements. Ash turned to his other Pokémon and nodded, telling them to get on the move. Pikachu's body sparked with electricity and he skidded to a stop to send his Thunderbolt flying out through the air. It was joined with Pipi's, as well as Vikavolt's Charge Beam. They combined, becoming a streaking hot bolt of lightning that seemed to pierce through the Motherbeast.

"Yes!" Lillie cheered, especially as Komala bounced upwards, striking on the hard shell that covered Lusamine. She bit her lip, clearly observing something. "If we can break that…maybe we can…"

"No time to think about that, Lillie," Gladion scolded his sister, jumping back as a tentacle slammed down on the ground. It may not have been using an attack on them, but from the fact that the tentacle hitting made an actual sound in this muted place, Ash could tell how dangerous it was. "Multi-Attack!"

"Hrrrrrra!" Silvally roared, charging forward as it, too, blazed with all manner of lightning around its body. As the Motherbeast tried to recover, Silvally joined with Luxray and Bunnelby, striking at the very body of the beast. It screeched loudly and its tentacles flew upward, glowing red.

"Here it comes, guys!" Hau yelled. Lillie jumped away and Ash ducked low, beginning to shout out his next commands.

"Use Leaf Blade, Decidueye! Toss them at the protective covering!" Ash screamed. The tentacles all reached the height of their glow and fired outward with red beams. Greninja rushed forward, summoning his kunai, and Ash did the same. Serena cried out as the attack hit Ash and pushed him back, making him grit his teeth. "Now, Toucannon! Hyper Voice!"

"Toucaaaaaaaah!" Toucannon cried out, sending the red waves of sound colliding upon the beast. It seemed to shudder from it, dipping slightly. At the same moment, both Decidueye and Primarina were shooting forward, one with a Leaf Blade that it tossed at the shield. Like with the Water Shuriken, it bounced off. Primarina slammed into it with her water-veiled form moments later, but bounded off with recoil.

"We either can't break that shield, or we'll need a lot more force than what we have!" Serena pointed out. Guzma was starting to stand, but wincing from the earlier blow. The Motherbeast was barely attacking, yet still…

Ash clenched his fist. "Lycanroc, hit it with Stone Edge! Passimian, Kommo-o, attack right now!"

His Pokémon moved in perfect concert, showcasing the team they'd become over the months. Lycanroc dashed along, right underneath the beast, howling as stones jutted upward, impacting with the underside of their opponent, before she dashed out again. Passimian and Kommo-o appeared at the sides, in the air. One's scales were quivering, firing out with dangerous sound while Passimian aimed a Shadow Ball. No matter the density of sound or hardness of the berry, the shield didn't crack as the attacks made explosive contact, and the Motherbeast didn't falter, like it regarded them as insignificant. That was becoming a problem.

"Hey, twerps, you're the ones with the motto of never giving up! Crabrawler, into Bewear's arms and use Bubblebeam!" James called out. Ash looked over to Team Rocket. They seemed to have gotten hit by the Power Gem, from how ripped their clothes looked, yet they continued to truck on. If anyone knew how to take hits, it was Team Rocket.

"Spin, Bewear, spin!" Jessie laughed out manically. Bewear practically hugged Crabrawler and began to do exactly as her trainer asked, spinning rapidly, like she was dancing in a performance. Silver orbs were flying from her along with a cascade of bubbles. The tentacles moved upward, knocking them away like they were harmless projectiles. "Now, twerpette! Show us you mean business! Bewear can take it!"

"Jessie…" Serena said worriedly, but then she nodded. "Braixen, light Bewear on fire with Flamethrower!"

"Braixen!" Braixen agreed, aiming her wand for the spinning Bewear. The Flamethrower rushed through the air, cutting through Bewear as it made contact with one of the tentacles. Ash pumped a fist, yet the next moment later, it looked like the tentacle was barely damaged. Bewear, however, was on fire, and on a spinning collision course for the Motherbeast. Ash cast his eyes around, noticing his other three Pokémon were on the move. Pikachu had jumped directly on Toucannon's back as she soared around the air of the space.

"Cool idea! Incineroar, Darkest Lariat!" Hau said. Incineroar growled with a twitching lip and began to spin, just as Bewear was, black flames surrounding both arms. He and what seemed like his female counterpart both spun forward, and in seconds they both made contact, hitting the tentacles at the side and cutting through them.

"Now, Pikachu!" Ash yelled. "Iron Tail!"

"Chuuuuu pika!" Pikachu cried. He jumped off of Toucannon from above. Lusamine's head snapped up, and her few tentacles that hadn't been damaged went flying for Pikachu. At the same time, Silvally charged for underneath the beast, claw glowing its usual blood red. Bonnie ran forward, rearing back and throwing Dedenne right for the tentacles encroaching on Pikachu.

"Parabolic Charge!" she cried, tears flinging out from her eyes. "This is for Rotom!"

"Denenenenene!" Dedenne chattered out angrily, rubbing his cheeks as the electricity gathered within him. He stopped in the middle and sent the orb flying out. The sparks and shocks blasted around him, stopping the tentacles enough for Pikachu crack down on the top of the bubble with Iron Tail. He didn't bound off, but nor did he make a dent. Silvally swung up with its red claw from below. The beast screeched in pain once more.

"We have to be making  _some_  kind of dent in this thing…" Clemont commented. Ash looked to him, noticing that his glasses had been cracked in the scuffle. It was so difficult to keep track of everything that had happened through the battle with the chaos of the flailing tentacles. "So, let's keep trying! Bug Buzz!"

"Take the chance and use Wood Hammer!"

"Greninja, Aerial Ace!" Ash called out. He heard another command from Serena in the meantime, but didn't have the presence to focus on just what it all was. Greninja ran forward, his glowing limb seemingly grabbing on to Komala and tossing him upwards. The Normal type spun through the air, bringing his green wood chunk hammering down a couple times on the shield. A tentacle raised to swipe it off, but Vikavolt had sped in, soundwaves pulsing from its body to stop the assault, a counter that caused the beast to shiver. The sun and moon that were hanging pulsed, and the Motherbeast seemed to suddenly regain vitality. Greninja kicked up, driving the beast a little higher in the air.

"Is that all?" Lusamine's voice taunted, mixed in with Necrozma's wicked tones. Her smirk was still omnipresent through it all, like it was frozen in place upon her. "I thought you had more to you, humans! What a waste! Mirror Shot!"

Greninja backed up, and once more, they all scattered. The tentacles glowed silver, the orbs appearing yet again, and they shot all around. Some were absorbed by the walls, others ricocheted off in numerous directions. One, however, aimed right for Decidueye, who prepared to intercept it, but seemed just a fraction too slow.

"Cannnah!" Toucannon suddenly squawked, using Flame Charge to move quickly. She got between the metal orb and Decidueye, the attack striking her body. She went rigid for a second and then dropped. Ash whipped his pokeball out as Decidueye kneeled at her side.

"Kooroo? !" he cried in concern, but Toucannon didn't move, utterly spent. The Arrow Quill Pokémon's body shook angrily and he stood. The next second, he'd disappeared, reappearing underneath the beast, his body glowing blue. Then he kicked upwards, sending wind rippling in that direction. The attack was certainly powerful, driving the beast further upward and making it howl in pain. Ash took the chance to call Toucannon back, which seemed like a signal of sorts. Everyone was on the attack again, sending as many projectile attacks out at the dome as they could. It was like that was source of everything. If they pulled Lusamine out, the merging could be undone. Necrozma would be finished. Ash knew it. The only question was  _how_?

Decidueye kicked up once again, only this time his speed didn't allow him to break away before the next attack came. A tentacle shot out, grabbing ahold of him and holding him in place. Something else began to charge up on the tentacles, like lasers of a brilliant rainbow color. Ash wasn't the only one that noticed. "Incoming! Greninja, free Decidueye with Cut!"

"Ninja!" Greninja called, zipping forward. He was fast, cutting across the tentacle with his kunai and causing Decidueye to drop down and pull back, freed. Pipi soared forward, darting through the writhing tentacles that were raised before punching down on the protective covering with a glowing fist. It shuddered, and Ash could swear that he saw a crack. At least, for a second he did, until the sun and the moon, hanging there like great orbs, pulsed and Nebby cried out with pain. Then the crack was gone.

"Ahahahahahaha!" Lusamine cackled out and the tentacles almost seemed to bend backwards and fire the lasers right into the sky, towards the ceiling of the space. They soared upwards, joining together, and Ash felt a hand pull on the back of his shirt. When he glanced that way, he saw Guzma.

"Ya can't win like this! Not against her," he told Ash with a heaving breath.

"Well, we have to try! Block them! Tri Attack!" Gladion wasn't the only one with the idea. Chespin was sending rocketing Pin Missiles out and Primarina was attacking with Bubblebeam. The lasers in the air split off like streaking meteors, set to rain down on them, more numerous than they could hope to counter, even with a Seed Bomb and another Bubblebeam joined in. Clemont grabbed Bonnie, while Komala rolled to Lillie's side.

"Pikachu, Counter Shi-" Ash's command didn't get off. The lasers hit them all in a powerful barrage. Ash was flung backwards, colliding with Guzma and Gladion both. Hau and Team Rocket became a mess of limbs while Lillie crouched, gripping at her knees as her outfit began to be ripped apart. Lusamine's maddening laugh increased.

"Primarina!" Serena shouted, half in a plea and half in fear. Ash looked up in time to see Primarina sailing through the air, flinging an orb of water outward that hung there for a moment and then once more broke apart, showering down on all of them in a light rain. It was amazing, the way Ash felt like his wounds were healing as the droplets touched his skin, and his Pokémon, especially Pikachu, who'd gotten hit, perked right up. However, Primarina slammed downward, striking on the floor with an actually audible tumble. "No! Primarina!"

"See?" Guzma said, pushing the boys off of him and bringing himself to stand. "That thing don' attack often. But when it does, it's gonna hurt! And it keeps healin' over and over, cuz it's takin' from  _them_!" At this statement, Guzma pointed both of his hands over to Nebby and Lunala. Ash wasn't sure what to take from that, though Clemont gave a little gasp that showed he understood. Ash just turned his eyes on the Motherbeast, and suddenly it slowed, at least to his eyes, if not in reality.

He was seeing its movements. It had to take time to attack, in order to control all those limbs as one…and while it was recovering, the tentacles served as a guarding barrier. Meanwhile…

"The sun and moon it created…they're meant to draw in Nebby and Lunala's power! But they're not real! Just receptacles that are part of the Motherbeast," Clemont pointed out. That told Ash everything, and he grinned. His Pokémon caught the grin and it soon went around to their entire group. "If we stop them, we can free our two friends  _and_  stop it from healing all at once!"

"Then we just have to be careful!" Ash said, slamming his fist into his hand. "Hau, Team Rocket, you guys take the sun! Lillie, Serena, Clemont, Bonnie, you all destroy the moon! Me, Gladion and Guzma will smash that thing right down its center!"

"Got it!" they all cried, splitting off into the three groups. Lusamine watched them from within her bubble, like she thought they were adorable to all be scurrying around like that. Ash's Pokémon returned to his side while Serena had also returned Primarina to her pokeball. She nodded at him, and ran off with the others. Ash made sure to have a good view of each group's target while Guzma and Gladion stood at his side.

"Can't believe the three of us are teaming up like this," Gladion noted with a soured chuckle. Guzma cracked his knuckles a bit.

"Not my preferred bit, either, kid. But I ain't lettin' the president do that to my brats," Guzma snapped out. Golisopod looked exhausted, but nodded to Greninja with a shuddering breath, ready for battle. "She's way beyond savin'…"

"Who cares about any of that? Right now, let's end this!" Ash called, punching forward. His arm movement was a signal to all of his Pokémon, calling for those that remained to act, surging forward. Guzma also called out for a First Impression. Golisopod's claws glowed green, and it ran right in for the center. Two tentacles rolled inwards, but the others aimed to stop those at the sides. No one was deterred.

"Bubblebeam, Crabrawler! Make it max force and I'll give you extra berries when we're out of here!" James called. Crabrawler took to that with enthusiasm, opening both claws wide and firing off with the powerful bubbles towards the sun. He wasn't alone in attacking, as Pipi charged up her body and sent a Thunderbolt flying. The two attacks struck the orb, and the sphere around Nebby cracked a little.

"You impudent foooools!" Lusamine screeched, more of her voice mixing with Necrozma's. It was like every attack she made erased more and more of her own self. The tentacles glowed red again, though only those on the left side aimed for any particular target, in this case the hammering Crabrawler and Pipi. They fired off the Power Gem. At the same moment, Ash's Pokémon had reached the center of the Motherbeast.

"Pummel that shield and the bottom!" Ash called out. Silvally had joined at Golisopod's side, slashing up with its red claw, mixed in with the eerie green. The Motherbeast shook, the attack that was flailing around Serena's side shooting up into the air instead, missing the mark that was her, Clemont, Bonnie and Lillie. The same couldn't be said for Team Rocket's side. Incineroar was crossing his arms to block the powerful attack, but a red beam barreled right for Crabrawler.

"Bewaaaaaa!" Bewear cried out, jumping through the air with amazing alacrity and landing in front of the blast, taking it head on. Jessie cried out, stomping angrily as more of the sun cracked. At the same time, Pikachu sent an Electro Ball soaring onto the bubble shield, where it seemed to have a chink in its armor.

"No one hurts my beautiful Bewear and gets away with it! Pin those tentacles with Leech Seed!" Ash's eyes widened. They hadn't thought of that! In fact, Clemont, watching from the other side as a Flamethrower hurtled towards the moon, had his own ideas.

"Chespin, Bunnelby, hold the tentacles with your ears and Vine Whip, hurry!"

"Meanwhile, keep hammering at it! Close Combat! Poison Jab!" Ash threw in.

"You use Razor Shell!" Guzma roared. It was still strange to have the man by his side, but Ash was grateful for the assistance as Golisopod leapt upwards, his watery blade coming forth. Plants erupted from the ground on Team Rocket's side, snagging on all of the tentacles but for the two that hung towards the center, swinging back and forth to try and prevent the middle group's assault.

Passimian and Kommo-o leapt up top, and Passimian punched and kicked forward rapidly on the shield. It was still repairing itself, but was weakening bit by bit. Kommo-o's arms glowed purple and his own punches came more and more fierce in a rapid succession. Greninja retained distance, while Lycanroc slammed into the Motherbeast over and over with Accelerock.

"You insignificant pests. I already told you to  _get out_!" Lusamine yelled. The two inner tentacles swung in, electrifying themselves as Passimian and Kommo-o dropped. A charging orb of electricity was formed and then blasted out as a beam.

"Lycrr!" Lycanroc growled, speeding around with her Accelerock and moving right inwards, leaping in front of the blow to protect her boys, just as Toucannon had. Ash whipped his pokeball out before she could hit the ground from the Charge Beam consuming her entire form. Her body was already smoking.

"Braixen, Psyshock!" Serena yelled from her side of the battlefield. Ash tilted his head just a little, noticing that Chespin and Bunnelby were both struggling to hold the tentacles by bundling them together. Vikavolt was soaring forward with bursts of electricity, hitting the tentacles over and over, as if attempting to break them off of their foe. Braixen, however, slashed both of her claws, six purple streams flying out.

"Rollout!" Lillie called, her breath heaving and sweating. In fact, Ash noticed they were all sweating from the exertion of that battle's work. Guzma dropped to a knee as the two center tentacles whapped outward, hitting Passimian and Kommo-o. Pikachu called for them worriedly, but flipped around with a mighty Iron Tail to beat them away from himself.

"Combine with Parabolic Charge!" Bonnie commanded fiercely. Dedenne, already heaving with breaths, leapt forward to send his orb of electricity out. Bonnie and Lillie clapped their hands together as Komala collided with the orb in the middle of his Rollout. He sparked and slammed into the moon's surface. It seemed to be an especially powerful combination, especially when the six beams of Psyshock struck the center, hammering into the surface like nails.

"Now, Clemont!" Serena yelled. Feeling that group was okay, Ash turned back to the center, where the tentacles were waving around wildly. He could only hear Clemont's yell by that point.

"Wild Charge!" the inventor screamed. Ash gripped his fist, and suddenly noticed something. The beast's movements were growing more erratic, almost like the two minds that were in control were diverging from one another the closer the attacks got to Lusamine. Whether it meant she had a mind of her own and didn't want to do this, Ash wasn't sure, but it gave them the chance to strike back.

"Greninja, Aerial Ace, keep those tentacles back!" Ash yelled. Guzma and Gladion screamed their own commands from next to him. The tentacles sailed inward as Passimian and Kommo-o came upwards to jab into the center of the Motherbeast. Ash moved his body in tandem with his Water type, kicking away the tentacles. It provided just the opening for Golisopod to ram through with X-Scissor while Silvally electrified the other with its Multi-Attack.

"Raaaaaay!" Luxray growled from the other side, slamming powerfully into the moon that was there, before following it up by biting in with a Thunder Fang. Ash watched as the moon cracked and then shattered into multiple pieces.

"Nooooooooo!" Lusamine howled, the two voices starting to diverge from one another in the pained scream.

"She's…she  _is_  still inside there," Guzma said in surprise. Gladion scowled a bit.

"Maybe a part of her…but she's still Lusamine," Gladion spat at the man that was once his boss. "She's still twisted."

"Oh, not good," Ash spoke, watching as the tentacles broke out from their previous confinement, spurred on by rage and waving around ferally, like they didn't care who they struck or hit. They tore away from the Leech Seed that had been holding them there. On one side, it was charging up a Mirror Shot that glowed silver, while on the other side, the rainbow-colored lasers had been formed. The two minds were controlling two separate aspects of the body now that it had been weakened. Even the attacks seemed weaker, though still powerful. "Passimian, Kommo-o! Protect them!"

"Passi!" Passimian called out, his copies appearing all over the area. Team Rocket was still busy attacking the giant flaming orb alongside Hau, as a Psybeam and Dark Pulse hit into it. Jessie turned and pointed right for Ash, just as a shadow flitted overhead. Within seconds, Lunala had slammed into the Motherbeast with her full body, free at last.

_"Now, Necrozma, this ends here! We shall take_ our _power from_ you _! Return this world to the state it should be! Your 'nothingness' ends here!"_

"No…no…I am nothingness! I am eternal!" The Mirror Shot fired off at this claim. It hit Luxray, who spun through the air and tumbled to the ground. Clemont returned him and whipped around to face the Motherbeast.

"Which one's speaking? Lusamine…or Necrozma?" the lemon blond asked.

"Who cares, Clemont? Now that Lunala is free, just attack it!" Bonnie shouted. Dedenne appeared to agree, keeping up his appearance of strength despite his tiny body sagging with exhaustion. Serena also ran forward.

"She's right! Hidden Power!" Serena yelled. That command, showcasing her beauty in battle, was the cry for those available to strike swiftly for the center.

"Yeah, and don't interfere! We've got this!" Jessie smirked out in Ash's direction. The raven-haired trainer turned to her, wondering just what she meant. That's when that side's tentacles fired the rainbow of lasers. Incineroar cloaked itself in fire and charged upwards, aiming for the sun and diving into it, unaffected by its obvious heat. Once it was there, Ash noticed a black spot blossoming inside of it. The lasers coalesced up above and began raining downwards. Hau stood with Team Rocket, each of them standing their ground against the attacks.

"You just have a job to do!" James said with a nod. Hau grinned at all of them as his own response.

"Team Rocket always cleans up house! You got dis, twoip! Now, Wobbuffet!" Meowth said, and all of them there saluted. Ash shook his head, already knowing what they were planning to do. The lasers began to strike, obliterating Passimian's copies, even striking the real one, as well as Kommo-o, until Lunala swiped her wing, knocking away and blocking the lasers from striking the center.

"WOBBUFFET!" Wobbuffet cried proudly as the lasers battered his blue body without a single sense of remorse. His body glowed, sagging just a little as Team Rocket were also assailed. They didn't move an inch, and there was a brief second of silence. Then Wobbuffet fired with such power, it pierced right through the sun and Incineroar snapped his dark, burning limbs apart, breaking the sun right in half. Ash turned right around.

"Greninja, plunge your Water Shuriken right now! Everyone, attack!" Ash yelled, running right at the Motherbeast. A cracking, shattering sound indicated that Nebby had broken free, bounding over the fallen Team Rocket and Hau to sink a fiery fang into the writhing tentacles. The beast screeched, its excess limbs flailing all around. Greninja leapt up top as Braixen, Pikachu, Dedenne, Vikavolt, Golisopod and Silvally all rammed upwards for the center from below. Ash called his pokeballs out to take Passimian and Kommo-o back, their fallen forms also smoking on the ground. Then the Ninja Pokémon struck, plunging the Water Shuriken straight inside the dome surrounding Lusamine. She gasped, almost like she'd been stabbed, as it began to crack. The Motherbeast's healing was gone; now was their time to end this!

_"You shall take our power no longer! Necrozma, your end is now!"_

"No…no…" Lusamine cried out, the voices once more sounding separate, on the verge of a collapse. Ash whipped to Decidueye.

"Now, use Spirit Shackle! Drive it in! Everyone, one final push! Let's end this!" Ash called. Everyone there came to stand by him, except for those that had fallen. Even Nebby and Lunala began to charge up their own attacks. Decidueye flipped upward, passing Greninja as he leapt up high and aimed his arrow, and then he fired. "Pikachu, Electro Ball!"

That singular command led to a cascade of following commands from his friends. Braixen's Flamethrower shot out, combining with Nebby's own, far more powerful Flamethrower. Dedenne seemed too tired to do much, but Bunnelby and Chespin pitched in with their projectile attacks, while Vikavolt fired off a Charge Beam. Guzma and Golisopod hung back, seeming spent, while Komala flipped into the beam of energy, rolling along with force as Silvally sent a Tri Attack at it. The attacks all combined together, forming a large beam that nearly eclipsed the beast and was sent rippling through the air. Then, the blistering blow struck the bubble-like covering.

A single moment passed where Ash heard his breath rise and fall. Then he reached out for Serena's hand, who grabbed on to Lillie's, and on and on in a chain between all of them there. Seconds later, there was the explosion followed by the horrendous screaming, endless screaming…yet no sound of shattering. Smoke billowed upwards, and Ash peered through it.

"You…no…This is…This is…my space! My beautiful world!" Lusamine screeched, grunting and groaning with pain. Lillie winced, but Gladion held his ground. "I will not…I will n-not let you take my b-beautiful world of n-nothingnesssss from me!"

"Take?" Ash asked, stepping forward now and bringing the others with him. His hand dropped from Serena's. "You're taking  _our_  world from  _us_! You're trying to use destruction to bring about the creation  _you_  want! That's no way to create at all! You can't save anything, or make anything beautiful, by destroying things! That's where  _Michael_  went wrong."

"Silence… _humaaaan_!" Necrozma, clearly the dominant one, roared. Its tentacles whipped out, while inside the bubble, Lusamine was clutching her head, screaming loudly. The tentacles all glowed different colors, as though it was unsure of what attack to use nor on what target or where. Suddenly, a beam fired, like the light of the moon from a radiant Lunala, piercing through one side's tentacles. In the same vein, a brilliantly radiant Nebby shot forward like a flaming meteor to pin down the other side with its giant paws. The Motherbeast's attacks went off, firing randomly, yet those two strained against the blows that struck them, groaning.

"Nebby!" Lillie yelled, stepping forward worriedly. Ash, however, turned towards the creature that opposed them, the one who had caused all the pain from Michael's plan, and faced it. He held his Z-Ring up.

"That's what you'll never understand! Or grow from!" Ash yelled. Next to him, Serena and Gladion all raised their own Z-Rings up, causing the others to stare in awe. Lillie watched a moment, and then joined in on the effort, her fist raising high and proud while she stared up at her mother. "Because this isn't just for ourselves! It's for everybody! We're working to protect our world! It's the exact reason…

"You'll  _never_  beat us!" all four of the champion Z-Ring bearers yelled out to Necrozma. The Motherbeast stopped writhing for a second as the Z-Rings pulsed with light. Then, as one, the champions yelled out, "Guardian deities of Alola! Answer our call! Protect our world!"

There was a moment where the Z-Rings flashed with yellow light which nearly enveloped the Ultra Space, the same as those of the crystals given to them by the Tapus. Then, with a sharp cry of power, those summoned guardian deities did just that, answering their call and arriving in the Ultra Space with a flash, prepared to deliver the final blow in the battle for their world. Along the walls, memories in the Ultra Space rippled all around them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: Whew! That was by far the longest battle I've ever had written against a single opponent. It was almost 5,000 words! Easy enough when you write an eleven-on-one battle. I hope it played out well. It was a bit different for a final battle, and not entirely done yet, either. This wasn't just "let's beat the crap out of each other" but a race against time and a whole group effort; sort of a puzzle boss, if you will. I hope that came through, and that you enjoyed it. I tried to make it good, but I always question myself!
> 
> On the other notes, obviously everything about Necrozma in this story is explained here, so that should all make sense, as I'd built to it. Likewise, it was the one that bonded Lusamine with Nihilego, because that makes more sense to me than just the two of them. Plus, I wanted them to battle the Motherbeast, and not do what the games did by making you only fight her Pokémon team. Really, I just hope that the final battle was enjoyable as the climax comes to an end next chapter! We're nearly there!
> 
> This has been a wild ride so far; thank you for taking it with me. To show that thanks, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	29. A Mother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to say that this particular climax has been a long time coming. Hopefully my hard work on it all has earned a review from you. Ah, well, time for Chapter 29!

Chapter 29

A Mother

"Come on, Gladion! This way! This way!" Lillie, no older than eight years old, shouted as she ran down the pristine, white hallway, waving for her brother. Gladion walked slowly, digging his hands into his dress pants. "You've got to see this!"

"Lillie, we can't just play around like this. You know what mom gets like," Gladion sighed out, taking a hand and running it through his hair, while the other started fiddling with the buttons of his waistcoat. It was obvious how much he hated wearing these things. "She hasn't been the same about things since dad…"

"But it's really cool!" Lillie insisted, very clearly ignoring the words that her brother had just spoken. The blonde reached forward, enclosing both of her tiny hands around Gladion's wrist, and finally pulling him along with her adventurous spirit. The boy appeared to give in, now, no longer struggling against his sister's whims. His feet just dragged along and he rolled his eyes at Miss Wicke as they went by. The woman was sending them an inquiring look, but otherwise made no motion that indicated she'd seen them at all. Only when they approached what was their mother's study did they finally stop.

Lillie's foot slipped on the cleaned and polished floor, and she tripped forward. Gladion attempted to stop her from falling, but ultimately did a relatively poor job of it, considering that grabbing her elbow just caused the young girl to snap her head into the mahogany door that led to their mother's office. Gladion jolted, and he looked rather fearful, wincing lightly. There were a few seconds of Lillie silently rubbing her head from the pain that blossomed on it through her new bruise, and then the door snapped wide open, revealing their striking mother.

Yet she looked…almost normal. Other than her puffy eyes, she wasn't wearing a smirk, but instead a look of almost severe displeasure as she addressed her children. "Lillie! Gladion! What have I told you about playing in the hallways? ! This house is not to play in."

"Sorry, mother," Lillie spoke, still rubbing at her bruise and looking up. Lusamine regarded her daughter with a slight affection and a sigh, bending down to touch to the mark on Lillie's forehead. Beyond her was a man with honey blonde hair and glasses upon his face. At his feet seemed to be a cage, covered up, and there was something else, some otherworldly presence inside the room.

"Go get yourself patched up, Lillie," Lusamine spoke with a tired sigh. "I don't have time to deal with this. There's a very important guest for me to meet with today."

"I wouldn't consider myself  _that_  important," the man laughed out, adjusting the glasses on his face and obscuring his crystal blue eyes. "Just someone hoping to advance the cause of the Aether Foundation throughout the world. I think a lot can be done with it to make a more beautiful world for people."

"Yes…a beautiful world," Lusamine spoke, patting Lillie on the head. She reached up to grab her mother's hand with glee, but it had already been removed by the time she did. Gladion frowned up at the man that was there, and then grabbed ahold of Lillie once more, dragging her off to find a first-aid kit. Lusamine straightened while the man came closer.

"I have a daughter, too, roughly her age," the man spoke with a light laugh, completely devoid of humor. "Planning to see her soon, actually. Now, would you like to discuss further business, Madam Lusamine? I'm sure these spoils will be very useful for research. I went to great pains to locate them."

"Mm…the Ultra Space you said? A world where even the faintest of dreams can become a reality…" Lusamine spoke out. Her lips twitched a bit, forming their telltale smirk for all of a second before it was gone, almost as though it had never been there in the first place. "Tell me more, Vice President."

The memory faded away. The sounds of voices inside the manor were replaced with those of screams inside the Ultra Space, and Ash remembered just where he was. Not that he had ever forgotten, but seeing the memories of what had begun Lusamine on her path had struck a sudden chord in him, and he looked up at the woman, concealed inside the cracked, protective bubble-like covering. She was screaming.

"No! No! My world! My beautiful world! What have you done? !" The screech was actually echoing now, causing all of them to wince from its volume and high pitch. It was a painful cry of a woman who had nothing left, and a being that was never anything more than nothing in the first place. Both fit together like a glove, and were quickly realizing how empty it made them. Ash would have pitied them both, but for the fact that they were already trying to attack again. "You will  _not_  take my freedom from me!"

The Motherbeast whipped around, tossing Nebby and Lunala off. They flew backwards before they skidded along the ground, and a yellow beam of crackling electricity fired out powerfully from one of the Motherbeast's tentacles. Ash's eyes widened, but Gladion and Clemont were taking action, right alongside Lillie and Bonnie.

"Spark!" Clemont called out. Vikavolt soared in, electricity buzzing around his body as he did so, aiming straight for the center of the shocking beam. The beast's tentacles flew around wildly, erratically, trying to bring out some kind of attack, but failing to make up its mind as to which kind it would be. The red beams of Power Gem fired around in one direction, and both Braixen and Greninja used their wand and knives, respectively, to try and block the blow, though Ash could feel the pain that Greninja was enduring from the strike impacting with him. Vikavolt, Silvally, Komala and Dedenne all rode into the electricity that was being shot out, the same attribute swirling around them and sparking.

"We can't…hold this…" Serena grunted out. Braixen had been pushed against her, straining to continue with holding the last, desperate attack of the Motherbeast. Lillie had stepped forward, tears still in her eyes.

"Mother! Mother! Please, stop this madness! Please, free yourself!" Lillie yelled, as though wanting to give her mother one final chance to save herself. But Lusamine seemed entirely lost to the words, the attacks not stopping. Ash felt stabbing pain in his chest as Greninja was flung backward, the red glow of Power Gem covering his whole body. The Ninja Pokémon slammed to the ground, tumbling across it, and Pikachu ran to his side while he attempted to get up, but strained, his form fading away. Ash nearly sunk to a knee from the ache traveling along his body.

"She's gone, Lillie! We can't save her! She's part of that thing!" Gladion yelled. Ash's body finally gave in and sunk to a knee, breathing heavily from the pain. The attacks weren't stopping, and a very little number of avenues were left to them. Ash looked up, watching the Tapus circle overhead, not making a move. Or perhaps they couldn't make a move, saving their attacks for one final blow.

"No…" Ash breathed, standing. "Lusamine  _is_  still inside that thing…I could hear her, too, in pain…crying out in her craziness…and right now, we need to smash that thing to bits."

"You will not!" Lusamine roared, sounding more like Necrozma with every second, their voices coming back together. "This is  _my_  domain! This is  _my_  beautiful world! Those who do not have a place in it shall…you shall…sh-sh-shall…

"DIE!" All of the tentacles acted in tandem as they fired the rainbow of lasers outward, giving their attack group no time to block. Serena stepped closer to Ash, gripping at him while she pulled Lillie back. Ash, however, stood up straight, and stood his ground. Nebby and Lunala leapt forward, intercepting the attack coming towards them. The tentacles of the Motherbeast flew back as it tried to sail forward with a wicked vengeance.

However, as Nebby and Lunala moved forward through the attack in order to collide with the beast, it was pushed  _and_  pulled back.

"Don't…consider Team Rocket…done…" Jessie was heaving out. Ash's eyes widened as he looked towards the back of the Motherbeast. Like a chain, Jessie, James, Meowth and Hau were all hanging on to one of the tentacles, holding it back, while Nebby and Lunala pushed forward against the creature's main body. The screeching intensified angrily all around them, pulsing in Ash's ears and making him work to stand.

"Don't…d-d-don't interfere! Turn to n-n-n-nothing!"

"You already  _are_  nothing!" Ash yelled out, raising his Z-Ring high once again as he finally stood fully. Clemont and Bonnie watched, ordering what remained of their Pokémon to hold the Motherbeast in place from its back tentacles. Serena let go of him and followed him in action. "You're nothing because, instead of sharing, you just wanted to keep everything to yourself! You tried to make other worlds a part of what you were instead of just having the Ultra Space be what it was! You  _are_  nothing! You're a shadow! You've always been a shadow! And no amount of power that you take, or conflict you create, will  _ever_  make you more!"

"So, go back to the shadows you came from!" Serena spoke, the sheer brilliancy of life flowing from her. "We don't want your world, if all it will do is take from ours!"

"You want us to get out?" Gladion called, now raising his own wrist high, standing taller than before, his growth evident. The Motherbeast seemed more agitated than normal, especially with Chespin, Bunnelby, Clemont and Bonnie restraining its other tentacles as tightly as they could, opposite Team Rocket's side. "Why don't  _you_  get out? !"

"And leave our family and our world all alone!" Lillie finished, the light of hope exuding from within her. The Z-Rings burst with light, exploding outwards, and the ground of the Ultra Space began to rumble. Nebby and Lunala continued to push, holding the creature in place before them as it struggled, writhed and cried. From the ground came four giant, headless golden figures, emerging as though they were part of the land, itself. The Tapus all flew in different directions, soaring for the tops of those giants and becoming as their heads, their different masks closing to do so.

Ash looked to all of his fellow champions, and they all nodded. It was time to bring the battle to an end. "This is for our world, Necrozma! Lusamine! GUARDIAN OF ALOLA!"

The giant beings, glittering golden, powerfully swung their fists down in tandem with Ash's hand slamming down upon his fist forcefully. The others next to him all did the same, their Z-Rings pulsing. Then, the golden fists of the giants made their collision upon the beast with a mighty quake. Everyone pulled themselves off of the tentacles as the attack was made, and Ash remained standing there, his vest rippling from the shockwave that was a result of the blow.

Wind blasted through the area, causing most to hold on to one another, and there was a loud shattering sound. It was followed by a sudden tremor and then a wrenching, cracking sound that shuddered through the entire Ultra Space. Foreign sounds filled the air, like creatures driven into a frenzy, and as the ground rocked again, Serena pitched into Ash, where he caught her. The beings from the Tapu's Z-Moves vanished completely into golden powder, leaving behind a smoldering wreckage, obscured by smoke, as the Tapu's circled back in the air. More memories began bubbling around the surface of the Ultra Space, but Ash suddenly became far more concerned with Clemont's cry.

"It's breaking!" he yelled out, both in concern and panic. Ash threw his head around, noticing that much of the walls, those that weren't covered in the bubbles of memories and other images, were starting to crack. The twisted trees and buildings were disintegrating as well. Serena gave a cry, clasping Ash's arm as some of the ground even started to crack.

_"It is Necrozma's power, beginning to fail it!"_  Lunala shouted. The explanation made sense, Ash guessed, but it still freaked him out a little. Next to him, Gladion was twisting this way and that while the Tapus continued to circle around in the air.

"Where's Guzma?" the blond remarked. Ash would have looked, but the shaking of the Ultra Space more or less precluded that. He began to fall forward, and Serena was with him. It was no doubt a result the pain they'd both been afflicted with and endured in the battle. Screeches were filling the air, familiar ones that Ash had heard before.

_"You are finished here, creatures! Go back to your abyss and wait for us to command you!"_  Nebby roared like the lion he was. Pikachu ran up to Ash's side worriedly, while Ash grabbed his remaining pokeballs and returned both Greninja and Decidueye. The others were doing the same, wishing to not put any of their Pokémon in danger, even Team Rocket, who were gripping on to a bemused Hau fearfully.

"Pikapi! Pipika!" Pikachu cried, pointing upwards. Ash now followed his best partner's gaze and his eyes widened. While the Ultra Space might have been cracking, the Beasts that were inside it were far from finished. They were angered, as if in their final throes. Among them were numerous Nihilego, and yet, Ash's mind did not fog. Nebby and Lunala stepped forward fiercely, while the pained screeches continued to come from the dark smoke surrounding the Motherbeast.

_"After you, dear Solgaleo,"_  Lunala spoke sweetly, her wing caressing his fur a moment.  _"Let us hold this place as long as we can!"_

"Nebby! Be careful!" Lillie shouted, clasping to her chest, her attention split between all of the things going on, from the writhing Motherbeast, the circling Tapus, their friends all returning to watch the carnage that had resulted, and right down to both Nebby and Lunala, shining with their cosmic, radiant power. The cracking stopped progressing a little as all of the Ultra Beasts suddenly descended.

"Silvally, help them out!" Gladion called. Clearly, he had abandoned his thoughts of finding Guzma in the face of the imminent assault. Silvally rushed forward as Gladion's Z-Ring shined out, shifting it into some kind of typing. Ash wasn't bothered to find out which, especially as the creature that was made to destroy the Ultra Beasts ripped into them with unbound ferocity.

The bubbles of the memories on the walls began to pulsate, some of them acting as though they were eyes, which seemed to make sense, given that one could see into anywhere through the space that was connected to them. Some of them began to pop, and Ash found himself almost consumed, once again, by a show of them. This time, he saw a collapsed Lusamine, with a rather worried Wicke standing over her.

"Miss Lusamine, whatever is the matter?" the kindly woman asked, but Lusamine was simply heaving, almost seeming like she would throw up. There was a flicker behind her, of a creature…of Nihilego.

"It's nothing, Wicke," Lusamine insisted towards the woman. She reached up weakly, gripping at her desk and pulling herself up. Her fingertips caressed a picture that was there, showing her family as they once were. Ash almost wanted to close his eyes, not wanting to look at the image of what had been before all this. "Just a passing spell."

"This is no passing spell, madam," Wicke insisted worriedly. "I've noticed you growing weaker over the-"

"Drop it!" Lusamine screeched. Her voice had clearly shocked Wicke, who stepped back with concern. "I am fine. No better. Please, call Faba to me. His research on Cosmog would be most welcome before Michael pays a visit tomorrow."

"Y-yes, Madam President," Wicke said, and she backed out of the room. Seconds later, Ash watched as Lusamine heaved, touching her hand to her mouth, a trickle of blood coming from it. Ash's eyes widened a little as she stared at the blood on her hand, her eyes shrinking and widening.

"So…I'm ill, am I?" the woman asked before she began to laugh. "I suppose it's too much for the system to bear…but don't worry, my dear, sweet children…soon we can be happy again. Soon we can be together again, in our perfect world. I will do anything to make that happen."

"Mother…" Lillie breathed out, showing that she had seen the memory, as well. It faded away, bringing them back fully into the reality that was the Ultra Space. Serena gripped at Ash's hand, clearly trying to hold the tears in, herself.

"Lusamine wanted a world where she would be with her perfect family," his girlfriend spoke, sounding bereaved, herself, in that moment. "Like Zinnia, Dalton, and Reeree…she had lost something precious to her."

"But instead of considering precious to her what she had left," Clemont said, continuing the chain of thought, "she dove into creating her own perfect, illusory world to replace what she'd lost. It didn't matter, in the end, what happened to this world, because she would have her own."

"That's how…that's how I lost her," Lillie spoke, still gripping at her chest, looking she was about to throw up, herself. Team Rocket and Hau had returned to their side now, staring at the memories with some measure of horror. At the sides, Nebby and Lunala were holding the Ultra Beasts off with all of the attacks they could, aided by the remaining power of the Tapus. Likewise, the walls that were cracking slowed in their motion.

Ash breathed in. Lusamine's past was a sad one, driven by the same grief that had driven so many others, yet instead of letting herself grieve, she truly tried to replace what was lost by hurting everyone else. It was clear that even though Nihilego's toxins were inside her, that was a choice she had made to continue on, to the point that she was sick, possibly even dying. It was pitiable, if Ash was honest with himself, and Serena seemed to think the same way, as all of them present stared at the form of the undulating, pained Motherbeast. However, more pitiable than she was the creature which had worked with her and made it all possible in the first place.

_"Gah…! Ah!"_  it screeched and cried, its voice its own once more, high-pitched and keening. Ash stepped forward as the black smoke began to clear. The prime Nihilego flopped on the ground, destroyed and twitching from the pain of its merging with Lusamine and Necrozma, both. Lusamine stumbled out, her hair still black as she fell upon the ground. Lillie wanted to run forward, but Serena held her back in light of the shape rising into the air.  _"Mine…mine…my freedom! My world!"_

" _Your_  world…" Ash scoffed out, shaking his head as he looked up. Necrozma had taken shape and form now, but it was twitching, phasing in and out of the reality they were in. Its body had begun to glow, separating into orange and purple particles, like it was breaking into the light that it once refracted.

_"It was mine…my paradise! I would have been free! With this world, my freedom…for everything! Anything! Knowledge, power, light, potential!"_  Necrozma screamed, clutching at what Ash assumed was its head. Even then, its arms were breaking apart, shattering it into the nothingness that was before them.

"Necrozma, you're wrong!" he said sternly as the others came forward from behind him, standing at his back and supporting him, just as they always did. "You can't ever be free if you're constantly taking things from others. If you do, you're just nothing. Nothing but a shadow. Because if you're constantly taking from others in order to make yourself what you are…then how can you ever have a you? How can you ever understand anyone else? How can you ever love? Give life? Grow? The world isn't about nothingness, or having everything to yourself, but knowing who you are and what piece you are in the world as a whole.

" _That's_  what freedom, and being a part of the world is all about."

_Noooooooo!_  The voice sounded distorted, broken, as though fading away in its entirety. The Ultra Space began to shake powerfully once again, sending all of them terribly off balance. Ash pitched backwards, held fast by both Gladion and Serena. Clemont pushed his glasses up, shaking his head. It was becoming so obvious that as Necrozma was defeated, its shadow disappearing, so, too, was the Ultra Space. His friend commented on this.

"Now that Necrozma is defeated…it's obvious that it had intertwined itself so much with the Ultra Space, that I can't even see it lasting all that much longer without it," Clemont admitted. "This world will fall apart."

"Then we better get out of here!" Jessie insisted, already planning to make her way back, but she stopped with a rather loud gasp. Ash turned to her and noticed that the path they had once taken was twisted, the entrance no longer obvious. The entire space was undulating, making it impossible to see any way in or out. It was like Necrozma was trying to deny them their leave with its gasping, dying breath.

Even so, it was finished, twitching for but a moment until its arms snapped outward, and once more began to fade away into nothing but those particles. The sparkles of its power glowed on the air, yet it did little to stop the beasts that were yet being held back by Nebby, Lunala and Silvally. They seemed more enraged, practically directionless now. Lunala glowed with her radiance, a core of energy forming between her wings and then firing outwards like a cutting laser, shining with the brilliance of the moon. Likewise, Nebby hurtled towards its own opponents with the ferocity of the sun.

They seemed even more powerful now than they had before. As though their own power, once held in thrall by Necrozma, was now freed. Ash looked up to the Dreaded One, the one in black, and watched as its body became utterly rigid. No more fight was left in it as the final vestiges of its own body began to fade away from existence, like wisps on the wind. It looked down, staring at all of them. For a moment, Ash could swear that it wanted to say something, yet either could not find the words to do so, or simply didn't have the strength. It just remained there, and then faded away into shining sparkles that joined with the ones it had taken its strength from.

For all its machinations and intentions, Necrozma simply vanished, ending on its whimper as it returned to its true purpose inside Lunala and Nebby. Ash exhaled.

The Ultra Space suddenly gave off a horrible noise, like something was snapping in two. The Ultra Beasts halted their assault, as if frightened, and more and more ripples appeared along the wall. Bonnie gripped at Clemont and Dedenne, while Squishy and Bluey continued to hide in her bag. The four champions of the Tapus also held fast to one another in the collapsing space. Ash looked around, noticing that a very large gash was splitting the entire area, held together only by the shining Nebby and Lunala. It was absolutely terrifying, making one wonder just when the gash would reach them and open the world up beneath their feet.

The Ultra Beasts scattered, and they didn't seem to be alone. The bubbles on the surface rippled, showing more things, and not all of them memories. Some of them were glimpses of the present, like they'd seen when they had first entered the Ultra Space.

"They're…being driven back…" Clemont said in awe, a smile upon his face. His observation was correct. From within the bubbles, Ash could see the different portals throughout the world being sewn up, and as though they were cut off from their power source, the Ultra Beasts were leaving the world outside their Space behind.

"Nebby, is this because of you?" Bonnie asked of the large lion. Nebby turned his head, grinning at her with a tired expression. He didn't answer, but Ash felt he didn't need to. They were using all of their power to close the gates between worlds, as difficult as it was, even with their full power returned. They were controlling the Ultra Space, as they'd always been meant to. The space shuddered again, and Lillie fell forward to her knees. She got back up, just as a scream pierced the air.

"You ugly creatures!" Ash grimaced; he'd forgotten about Lusamine. Nebby and Lunala turned, still trying to hold things together, even as the worlds began to drift apart. Ash was hit with a wonder about how much longer they would remain connected in this space to their own world. Clemont had this same idea, judging from his suddenly frightened expression. Serena must have had something else on her mind for that moment to not react at all. "How  _dare_  you intrude on my world? How  _dare_  you take my future from me? !"

Lusamine suddenly lunged forward, becoming visible as her blackened hair flew out behind her, her crazed eyes shining with malice. Lillie began stepping forward and Serena and Gladion reached for her, crying her name, though she slipped from their hold as Lusamine aimed right for her daughter, her arm as a piercing tentacle that began to travel through the air. The toxins had taken their toll, Lusamine no longer able to tell the difference of family or foe, or perhaps just not caring which was which. Lillie remained there, and she spread her arms wide.

"Mother," she spoke, clearly loud enough that any could hear. Then she said three words, and though they did not halt Lusamine's crazed attack, they made all the difference, being spoken out of sincerity, from the depth of Lillie's soul. "I love you."

Lusamine's scream suddenly died, though the lingering effects of her time as the Motherbeast still sailed forward, as though her hand had fully become a tentacle, itself, slicing across Lillie's shoulder. The girl refused to budge, even as she grit her teeth in pain, blood spurting from the shoulder blade. Lusamine halted, as though she heard the words spoken. It was only for a second, before her eyes narrowed into slits.

But it was the only second that mattered.

"Gah!" Ash took a step forward at the sound from Lusamine's mouth, and as he did, all of the memories around them ruptured, sending them to the same space of those memories. It was like a film played on three different screens, each showing a memory that blended so seamlessly with all of the others.

"Mother! Please, we're hungry, and Miss Wicke doesn't make it like you do!" a young Gladion said. On the bed, Lusamine did not stir, staring endlessly up at the ceiling. It was like she was broken, unable to even grieve from whatever loss she had suffered in her life. Her children were at her bedside, hanging on it, hoping for her to hear their words.

"Mama," Lillie spoke, climbing on the bed and over to her mother, embracing her. "I love you, mama. Please, stay here. Don't go away like daddy."

"Your father…" Lusamine rasped out. It was like she couldn't comprehend. "Yes…he went away. Far away. Far beyond my reach." She seemed unfocused as she sat up, looking at her two children. That was when Ash saw it break in her eyes: the moment everything changed for the woman. It hadn't been a result of Michael's machinations; he had just pushed her, prodded her to do more and worse things. But this moment, Ash could see the light fade from her eyes.

It was the moment she stopped considering her children…her children.

"But I can bring him back again, can't I? There were rumors once of a man that could do that," Lusamine spoke, her eyes wide. She turned down, looking at Lillie and Gladion, who could do nothing but stare at her. "Perhaps I can…and if not, I could find a world where we can all be together."

"You, me, Gladion and daddy?" Lillie asked, her eyes shining. However, Gladion reached forward, gripping his sister's shoulder, pulling her back and away. The light inside Lillie's eyes died as she realized the impossibility of which Lusamine was speaking.

"Yes…yes…a perfect family," Lusamine breathed out. She reached forward and ruffled both of her children on their heads. "But if want to be, you must listen to me, children. Understood? No room for anything less than obedience."

The walls flipped on the memories, showing another one, of Lusamine hooked up to an IV while Faba stood over her on the bed, marking some things down on a chart. "I'm not sure how much longer it will take, or if you'll hold out, Madam President."

"I will be just fine," Lusamine snapped, sitting up straight and ripping the IVs off of her, staring down at her trembling hand. She focused on it, and managed to get it to stop wobbling. Cracking sounds were heard as Ash watched the scene play out, reminding him that they were still in the crumbling Ultra Space. "Just a little longer, and the world will be ours…that perfection…and we can…be together…"

"Lusamine…" Serena breathed, shaking her head next to Ash. "You can't run from pain by living in an illusion of perfection."  _Because the world isn't perfect. It's flawed, broken…but we still fight for it with everything we have, and keep living in it, even with the pain._

"Madam President, if you keep letting Nihilego influence you with those toxins, your body will not hold out," Faba told her sharply, distinctly. Lusamine brushed him off, coming to stand on her feet, a hospital gown flowing down with her hair. "I've monitored your body the last few years since Nihilego arrived, and while it vanished some time ago, the neurotoxin in your blood…"

"What I choose to do is none of your concern, Faba," Lusamine spoke. She walked to a partition, shedding her gown behind it in order to dress. "This is my path. I don't care how many toxins I take in, or how many things must be trampled over in order to reach my goal. If I need to shed my inhibitions to make it happen, I will. It  _must_  be done."

"Madam!" Faba shouted, but Lusamine dismissed him, stepping out from the partition and making to leave the room.

"Continue the experiments, and keep an eye on Gladion. He's seemed very agitated of late. If it's required, I'll have to take care of him myself," Lusamine waved off, finishing her dismissal of the man. Yet in her eyes, her pain was sharply there, only masked with a sense of little care. Ash wasn't sure which was the real Lusamine. He wasn't even sure if the real Lusamine existed anymore.

Especially from the final memory, which was nothing but another Lusamine, standing in the room where Nebby had been taken from. Her body just shook with anger and sadness, and she let out a howl of grief, slamming her hand down on the cage that Nebby was once held in. Her eyes, particularly her pupils, continued to fluctuate in size, as though she could no longer control her own mind. Or perhaps she could, but did not care to.

"You stupid girl!" she screeched, though no one was there to hear it. "It was for you! It was all for you! For our perfection! For our chance to be together as a family! Why did you betray me? ! Why did you defy me? ! Why? ! Why? Why…?"

Lusamine had sunk to her knees, practically sobbing, and the last remnants of whoever Lusamine had been before vanished. She was replaced with a different woman, cold and unfeeling, casting aside her family for her perfect world. There was no love left inside her, too twisted and wrought with grief, pain and desire. Ash and Serena, as if both in the same place, reached forward to see the memory shatter before their eyes, just as the bubbles popped, no longer showcasing anymore visions.

What it was replaced with, was Lillie, reaching out for her mother in that last desperate attempt to break through to her, her lips trembling. Also there, in mid-lunge, was Lusamine, her black hair suddenly brightening while a blue blade was protruding through her chest. Ash's eyes widened, and he saw Guzma standing there, his own body shaking furiously, holding Golisopod's claw up as its Razor Shell pierced through Lusamine's body.

He was crying.

Lillie was staring with widened eyes as her mother began to bleed from the wound, and Golisopod just held her there. Gladion stepped forward, as if recognizing his mother for the first time. The world was falling away around them, yet this was the only thing that had shaken any of them, none able to avert their eyes.

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry…" Guzma was saying over and over as he held it there, unable to stop himself from shaking. "But I can't…I'm sorry…"

"Guz…ma…" Lusamine breathed out, as though her mind had finally regained itself at long last, gripping to that lone piece of sanity inside it. The black faded away from her hair, turning it white, as pale as her skin. Her eyes seemed to settle normally, looking almost like they had before she'd broken inside. It was almost like the very toxins that had kept her going with her insane vision were gone, and she'd at last realized all that she had done.

"Sorry, Lusamine but…I can't watch ya suffer," Guzma cried out. He leaned forward, his body still shaking, and he kissed her on the top of her head. His next words came in a whisper, almost lost amidst the crumbling Ultra Space. "Because I love ya, too."

Then he pulled out the blade and sank to his knees. There was another shuddering, and Ash fell forward, the sharp pain of seeing Lillie fumble to catch her mother reminding him of his smarting wounds. Serena fell with him, both in pain as Clemont, Bonnie and Hau made to catch them. Pikachu cried out for them both worriedly, and Team Rocket continued looking for a way out, while Gladion rushed forward, just in time to catch Lusamine, falling against his sister. The siblings reached their mother as she collapsed, the blood from her wound staining their clothing. Guzma continued to cry silently, gripping his hair, asking what was wrong with him as Lillie turned Lusamine over.

Ash crawled forward just a little to see the woman breathing raggedly, her eyes looking around wildly, but not seeing anything. Lillie's lip was trembling, tears beginning to fall down her face as she reached forward and cupped her mother's own. At this, Lusamine turned to look at her daughter, and her eyes widened.

"Lillie…" she breathed, as though seeing her for the first time. Lillie continued to hold her and, in the meantime, Gladion also fell to his knees.

"It's okay. I'm here. I'm right here, mother," she spoke. Her tears wouldn't stop falling, and even Gladion, who'd hated his mother so much, reached forward, like he was hoping to hold her one last time. It was just like in the memory.

"Why are you crying…?" Lusamine asked, her eyes clouded with confusion. Her hand moved upwards, trying to reach her daughter's face, but lacking the energy to do so. "Was it me…? Did I make you cry?"

"It's okay, mother. It's okay," Lillie said, slowly caressing her mother's face in comfort. Ash could understand, bringing himself to stand and walk forward with Serena by his side. "I forgive you."

"Lillie," Lusamine said, a smile coming on to her face. It was the first one that Ash had ever truly seen. Not a smirk, not manipulative, not joy at other people's pain, but a genuine smile of happiness, as though truly seeing her daughter for the first time in forever. "When did you become so beautiful? So perfect? How many years did I miss?"

Lillie said nothing, but continued to hold her mother, whose consistently quieter voice showed her fading strength. The woman's eyes turned, seeing Gladion, though neither said anything. It was a moment of silence for mother and son, spoken only by the action of him taking her hand and squeezing it. Finally, Lusamine's eyes saw them, Ash and Serena, and they began to tear up, especially as the two came up behind Lillie.

"I see…Thank…you…" she breathed out, struggling to form the very words. Then she used the last of her strength, one final moment, looking physically and emotionally pained, so she could reach up and touch both of her children's' faces, and say the one thing they needed to hear. The one they hadn't in so long, yet was the one thing that Lusamine had been driven by with its absence. "Lillie…Gladion…I…love you…so very much…I'm sor…"

Then her strength gave out. Her hands falling, while her eyes remained wide open, staring at her beautiful children.

In the end, Ash realized, Lillie had broken through and repaired the absence of love in Lusamine's heart. The blonde fell forward, sobbing into her mother's bloody chest while Gladion reached across and held her, tears even falling down his face. Ash could only watch for a moment before he moved forward, kneeling and placing a hand on Lillie's back. The space began to shake, crack and groan. Their time was up.

"Lillie, we have to go," Ash spoke. She hiccupped, reining her sobbing in as she straightened up. The tears were there, but she nodded. Offering a hand, Ash helped her up, while Serena aided Gladion. Guzma did just fine on his own, standing and shuffling over to Lusamine. He looked down on her a moment and then bent low, taking her body and bringing it over his shoulders, unable to let go.

Another crackling shudder caused them all to pitch to the sides, knocking into one another as Nebby and Lunala intercepted them in order to keep them all on their feet for that moment. Ash could feel Lillie quivering against him, yet holding on to her strength, everything she had learned from her journeys and her travels. Pain and despair wouldn't take her the same way they took her mother.

"This place is really falling apart now!" Hau commented, spinning around with Pipi to try and find a way out of there, but unable to find one. They only paused to grab Lillie's abandoned bag from the ground, but otherwise remained apprehensive.

"And we're looking to be stuck here!" James moaned out. Ash looked up from his place against Nebby and tried to find a way out, himself. Things were starting to look hopeless. It was like Necrozma had tried to deny them one final victory.

Or, at the very least, it thought that it had managed to do so.

_Follow us!_  cried four voices at once. Ash immediately recognized from whom they came. His eyes, along with Lillie's, looked upwards to see the four streaking lights of the Tapus sailing for one of the undulating walls. Tapu Koko looked back, straight towards Nebby and Lunala. _Forge us a path!_

Neither Nebby nor Lunala gave any acknowledgement to the request, but their answer was obvious. A building that had been stuck in the ceiling of the Ultra Space finally crashed down to the ground, bursting into rubble. Yet amidst that, the only point of all of their focuses were the walls that were splitting apart, creating a corridor to the beyond, as Nebby and Lunala used their powers to craft it. Team Rocket took the first chance to run forward, Hau right behind them.

"Let's hurry up!" Bonnie screamed, holding tightly to her brother, dragging him along with one hand, while her other hand made sure to clasp tightly to the small backup drive that had belonged to Rotom. Ash looked to Lillie.

"Will you be okay?" he asked her. She nodded, steeling herself as her fists clenched powerfully.

"I'm a Pokémon trainer. We keep moving forward!" she said, putting a smile on her face. From his look to Serena, both could tell it was strained, but they also both trusted in Lillie's fortitude. Knowing that, Ash took her hand, and they began running along. Serena pulled on Gladion's hand, but he seemed to recover fast enough to come running up to their side. Only Guzma took a while, keeping ahold of Lusamine's body as he ran.

"I hated her…" Gladion said, almost whispering as they followed the four colored lights that were the Tapus through the twisting space before them. Nebby and Lunala were bringing up the rear, their brilliant bodies shining, as if that light was all that was holding the Ultra Space together, while at the same time seemingly holding back something. Lillie hung her head at her brother's comment. "Yet…even though I hated her…hearing her…I just…I wish we had more time…like dad…"

Ash reached over with his other arm and closed it around Gladion, giving him a hug in that moment. Serena wore a sad smile on her face; she knew better than anyone that he understood the loss of a loved one. Of a parent.

A bright light was approaching in the distance, and Team Rocket was giving off loud whoops that showed they were close to getting home. Things were breaking all around them, and grief was settling in their hearts, yet there was still that light, telling them it would be okay. The Tapus and Team Rocket reached the light, jumping outwards. Hau soon followed suit, yipping a little with a loud "Alola!" as he jumped forth. Next went Bonnie and Clemont, and soon, the four of them had reached the portal. They took hands.

"Come on, let's go home," Ash said to them all, and they jumped together. Ash turned his head back one more time, nodding to Guzma. He took his last look at the Ultra Space alongside Pikachu, and then they went sailing out of the portal. For a moment, it felt like being squeezed through a tube, and with his injuries, it was like he was barely able to breathe. Then he was out, and fresh air assailed his face in darkness. Next thing Ash knew, he had hit cool stone, his face smushed up against it. He shook his head and sounds suddenly returned to him.

"Ash! Pikachu! Serena!" He knew that voice. He'd heard it somewhere before, but his time in the Ultra Space had been so twisted up in memories that it took him a moment to truly recognize it. He looked up, just in time to see locks of blue hair fling themselves at his face. "You're all right! You're okay!"

"Ow! Ah…" Serena gasped. Ash looked to see that she had been doubled teamed by two of them, elbows pressing in on her definitely broken ribs. That she had fought through the pain and managed to hold it all together through that whole battle spoke to how impressive she was. He grinned at it.

"Pikaka!" Pikachu cried out, also squished in between Dawn and Ash, wanting air.

"Dawn, May, it's good to see you guys…but it really hurts," Ash wheezed out, suddenly realizing the pressure that Dawn was exuding on his chest from her hug around him. She sat up and pulled back, placing her fingers in a peace sign by her eyes.

"No need to worry, Ash!" she said, though somehow, Ash could hear that she actually  _had_  been very worried about them, turning her fingers into tissues that wiped her tears of concern away. It all spoke to only one thing for them, though: they were back.

"We made it," he breathed, reaching his fist up and pounding it against Gladion's. Then, he grabbed for Pikachu, the two of them hugging each other in relief. The blond male sighed out, still heavy with the events from the Ultra Space. It made Ash instantly think of Lillie, who his hand was still attached to, and he turned to look at her. Her shoulder was stained red and her knees seemed scraped, but she was still there, breathing. Her body seemed to have calmed down, yet held an apprehension in it.

"You both made it back all right!" boomed the voice of Meyer. Ash didn't need to look in order to know that Clemont and Bonnie's father had taken his children into what was most likely some kind of bone-crushing hug. Lillie looked in that direction, and her smile was sad at the sight of it. "Honestly, you two kids really have a way of making a father worry!"

"Sorry, dad," Clemont said, though even  _his_  tone was solemn, respectful of what had occurred inside. Ash cocked his head a little and saw that Korrina had also arrived there, wrenching her boyfriend from the arms of his father to hug him. Bonnie just remained kneeling, staring sadly at the small backup drive in her own hands. Near to them, Team Rocket were gripping each other and crying tears of joy at being alive.

Breathing in the fresh air, Ash took a look around at everyone gathered there, at the top of the altar. From Brock, alongside Aria, who seemed to be patching up some of the Skull grunts and Nanu (though the man didn't really care), to Paul leaning against his Torterra with a near dismissive nod. Seamus and Sawyer, as with the rest of Team Nova, looked to have fallen on their butts, breathing outwards, while Alain supported himself on Charizard. Ash quickly caught sight of the stars in the sky, beginning to pull apart, and the portals having been sewn up, leaving just small pinpricks where they had been, for the moment. Then his eyes traveled back to Lionel, nodding at him and Team Rocket before the heavy boots hit the stone of the altar. They all faced the newcomer.

"B…boss…" cried Plumeria's strangled voice, clearly working to try and get the words out. Ash now stood, Lillie and Gladion traveling with him. Serena was more difficult to stand, and required the support of May and, as odd as it seemed, Misty, to pull her up with her grunting pain. Guzma, meanwhile, was emerging from the wormhole, gingerly placing Lusamine's body down. Lionel watched it for a moment, alongside Plumeria, before the Skull admin stepped forward. "It…it is you, right? You're not…crazy or anything, are you?"

Guzma didn't say anything a moment, hanging his head for a second. He seemed almost ashamed, and with relatively good reason, Ash felt, even if Gladion and Lillie's faces showed they held no animosity for him making the final moments of Lusamine's doomed life quick. However, like a parent for their children, Guzma wore a brave face for all of them as he raised his head back up, running his sleeve along his eyes to hide his tears. Only Plumeria wasn't fooled. "Your boy Guzma is back! Sorry for makin' ya all worry, and all the trouble I caused."

"BOSS!" the Skull grunts all cried out, each and every one of them leaping for the man that was considered their family. His eyes went wide in surprise as they all piled upon him in a great heap, preventing him from escaping underneath them all. Lusamine's body went untouched from it, though.

"Yo! Plumeria! Get 'em off me! Gah, come on, guys!" Guzma hacked out, clearly struggling with the weight of his family. Plumeria let out a laugh, not a trace of bitterness detected within it, as she wiped tears of mirth from her eyes. It really made her strikingly beautiful from an objective point of view.

"Welcome back, dumbass," she laughed out with the tears on her cheeks. It was something heartwarming to see, at least, until Hau spoke up.

"What about Nebby?" he asked. To that, Lillie whipped towards the portal to the Ultra Space. She wasn't the only one, as all of the others looked in its direction and saw that bit by bit, the same as the wormholes in the sky, it was beginning to close, with Nebby and Lunala still very much on the inside. Lillie let go of Ash's hand and surged forward through the crowd, making her way to the portal. Ash, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie were close behind, all while Hau was making up the tip end of their procession.

"Nebby!" Lillie shouted, reaching forward for the lion whose face was sticking out. Lunala was nowhere to be seen by the time she reached Nebby, except for the bright light glimpsed in the portal's distance. Ash moved close to Lillie, looking to the majestic lion, his eyes sad. Lillie's lip quivered, and she stepped forward to make sure her hand could touch him. "You're leaving, aren't you?"

_"Yes,"_  was the simple answer from Nebby. Lillie nodded her head, more tears in her eyes.  _"I'm sorry, Lillie."_

"No, no…I…I understand," Lillie said, and she reached up to wipe her tears away. Ash even found his own eyes watering, and Serena took his hand. "You have things you need to do, right?"

_"The Ultra Space needs a ruler, and…as an Ultra Beast myself, I cannot survive forever in your world. It has been a miracle to last as long as I have, likely from my diminished form…"_  Nebby admitted. Lillie walked forward, coming closer, while Bonnie gripped her bag.

"You really have to go, Nebby?" the lemon blonde asked. Nebby nodded his head, looking at the younger girl. It prompted Bonnie to run forward and hug the lion as he hung out of the portal. She wasn't alone, Hau surging forward, too. Only Clemont hung back, swallowing as he wore his brave face. "I'll never forget you, okay?"

_"Nor will I forget you,"_  Nebby spoke, nuzzling Bonnie as Dedenne nuzzled right back, without the electricity.  _"You all were a wonderful family. So many wonderful memories that I never could have hoped for. It taught me how to love this beautiful world, something Necrozma could never grasp."_

"That's why you have to leave, isn't it?" Ash asked, placing his hands in his pockets. Pikachu jumped from his shoulder, and Ash watched him land atop Nebby, hugging him a little. Now, Ash, too, walked forward and patted Nebby on the head, joined by Serena. "Because…the Ultra Space isn't like our world."

_"Not now, but…I hope that one day it will be,"_  Nebby admitted. Lillie leaned forward, placing her head against Nebby's as the tears fell forward once again.  _"With Necrozma gone, we must use our full power to keep the Ultra Space together, just as we used our power to tether this world to ours as the stars fell out of alignment…Had Necrozma succeeded, it would not have mattered, that connection, but as it stands…_

_"We cannot stay here. As you said, Ash, we must find who we are without assimilating other worlds, and…I love this world too much to put it at that risk any longer!"_

"Nebby!" Lillie finally cried, hugging tightly to the one that she had taken care of all this time. She gripped at his fur and shook against him. The portal continued to close, almost consuming Nebby. Pikachu jumped back towards Ash, waving a little. Lillie continued on. "Thank you! Thank you!"

_"Whatever for, Lillie?_ I  _should thank_ you _. It is because of you that I do this,"_  Nebby told her, though it didn't stop her from hugging him tightly.  _"So that one day, when our worlds may connect again, you can look on the Ultra Space proudly from what we have made it into! So, thank you, Lillie! Thank you for the wonderful journey we had together! I wish we could have had so much more time together, but forever will I hold to the memories we made. Thank you, Lillie. I love you with all my heart. You and the others, both. And one day, I hope we will see each other again."_

"Me, too. Me, too, Nebby…and…maybe…maybe you'll stay in the bag, then," Lillie said, shuddering out choked laughter as she finally pulled away. Nebby let out a booming laugh of his own as response. The portal was now almost fully closed, and Ash could feel a sudden coolness at his wrist. He looked down to see that his Z-Ring was going gray, almost fading away into dust, depositing the crystals once within them onto his hand. He quickly stowed them away in his pockets, as Lillie stepped further back. "Nebby, I love you! And goodbye!"

No more words came from Nebby, but the sentiment was there all the same: one of enduring love, and a hope to see each other again, someday. Ash reached his hand out, as did Serena and the others, grasping for the portal that soon faded away with not a sound. He knew that their silent sentiments had reached through the Ultra Space, regardless. Then Ash's Z-Ring crumbled away completely, as did Serena's, Gladion's, and Lillie's. Lillie remained standing there a moment longer, staring at the spot where Nebby had been, tears falling. Hau and Team Rocket watched it, all four of them letting out sighs. Bonnie soon dug into her bag.

"They're gone…the flutes are…gone…"

"There's no more need for them," Clemont spoke into the silence that was around them, despite the number of people that were there. "The Ultra Space is no longer tied to our world, so there doesn't need to be a seal from our side. That…that was Nebby's parting gift to us."

"Nebby…" Bonnie said sadly, looking down at Squishy a moment, before looking up at Lillie. A quartet of sharp cries filled the air, and Ash looked up to see the Tapus shooting away from the altar as everything grew peaceful and quiet. Their role in the battle was over. A bright light shined out, and Komala appeared, exhausted, but leaning on Lillie's shoulder to cuddle her face.

"Thank you, Komala," she said, before reaching up to take him and hug him tightly. Ash smiled at that, even as tears fumbled down her cheeks. He wiped away his own and reached up to her shoulder, placing a hand there, while Pikachu also touched Lillie's face kindly with his own smile. Serena did the same for the other side, as the others, including Gladion and Guzma, just watched them without a word. Ash and Serena stood there silently, reminding Lillie that she wasn't alone; something she seemed to take to heart, even through all the pain.

The stars at last separated, and over the horizon, the dawning sun indicated the end of the battle for their world, and the end of Michael's machinations in Alola at last.

And Lillie, despite the tears that kept falling down her face, stretched her lips into a peaceful and joyous smile that eclipsed even the sun. There was no doubt in Ash's mind, as he stood there with his family, that she would be whole again.

To that, they stared at the rising sun; a new day was dawning for Alola and the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: And so, the battle and climax comes to an end. While the last chapter was the actual battle, this was more of the emotional climax, and quite a few things happened. For one, Guardian of Alola, the real reason behind being chosen as Tapu's Champions was deliver that awesome final blow to the Motherbeast. And Ash's speech to Necrozma.
> 
> However, at the crux of all this was Lusamine. I wanted to show some of her memories as well to really help understand that this was a woman who chose to do all the horrible things she did. Chose to have the neurotoxins in her system so she'd have nothing to hold her back. I didn't want to redeem her. She needed to die, unlike the games, but I wanted that moment to show that Lillie had broken through to her. That despite all those horrible things, Lillie still loved her for the mother that she was before all this. I think it made the difference. As for Guzma, yes, he landed the killing blow, but, of course, Lusamine was about to die from all the toxins and merging with Nihilego and Necrozma anyway.
> 
> Likewise, Lillie expected Nebby's parting, again different from the games, in order to repair the Ultra Space and rend it from the main world. In this case, Lillie has truly become strong, compared to the girl who ran from her past at the beginning of Tropics. I hope it all made sense thematically and plot-wise and maybe pulled at a heartstring or two.
> 
> The next chapter is the final chapter of this trilogy; no epilogue. After many months, it will reach its conclusion. Thank you for walking the road with me. Until that final time, please Review and Dare to Be Silly.


	30. A Goodbye

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this is it. The final chapter of the Alola Trilogy. It's been quite a journey. I hope you enjoy this final chapter, and I'll see you at the bottom! Alola to Chapter 30!

Chapter 30

A Goodbye

"Reports are still coming in from a week ago when the strange portals appeared in the sky, all over the world," a voice spoke from the television in the café. Y looked up, crossing his legs as he sipped on his coffee cup. It felt like it had been a while since he'd truly stepped foot into civilization, barring his brief stint in attending the League and Hope Leilani. "At the moment, the Pokémon League has confirmed that there was a known, large-scale assault from an undisclosed force. Details on this specific force are still unknown to the general public. However, there are a number of other details that have been made plain."

"I'm sure there are," Y chuckled out sardonically. He winced, pain smarting at his chest. No one around him reacted, which was something he preferred, if he was to be honest with himself. No one knew that he had fought alongside Kahili, holding back the storm of Ultra Beasts from the Lake of the Moone. It was better that way, if the news reports were any indication. He could already imagine what was happening now, the League likely meeting, following the battle, to discuss what had happened on the Day of Stars. He had his own thoughts on the matter, but they were pushed to the back burner at the sound of more words from the television, others in the café staring with rapt fascination. Y's pen clicked against the surface of the table.

"What we can report to you is that, knowing the extent of the mysterious force of creatures that attacked numerous cities, the League organized a number of trainers together. These trainers, headed by none other than Honor of Kalos recipients Ash Ketchum and Serena, also the winners of the esteemed Hope Leilani in the Alola region, as well as its first Alola League, managed to succeed in pushing back the enemies which brutally assaulted various locations.

"The worst extent of this damage seems to have occurred throughout the Alola region, with numerous cities and towns damaged, despite the protection of its Kahunas and captains," the reporter continued, shuffling through her notes, though not really needing them. Y continued to tap his pen on the table. "However, as seen from this footage, construction continues along swimmingly in repairing all of the cities, with the heaviest damage done to Hau'oli City. Amazingly, it's docks and airport were all protected immaculately by their island's very own Totem Pokémon, and departures will resume shortly."

Y reached over to sip some more on his coffee as he watched the television set. For reporters, they almost seemed rather poor, missing out on any number of the details regarding the Ultra Beasts. Then again, he supposed the League wanted to keep it that way. It hardly mattered to him. His eyes grazed over the paper in front of him, only a couple words written on its surface, and he sighed a little. Usually it was so easy for him to write, yet this time, there seemed to be so much more to say. He briefly looked out the window of the café in Malie City, staring up at Mount Lanakila. No doubt she was there already for the events that would take place tomorrow. He couldn't be prouder, even if he'd decided to not attend, keeping with her in spirit.

"In less fortunate news, the president of the Aether Foundation, Lusamine, lost her life in this particular battle for our world," the reporter spoke, her voice far more solemn, befitting the somber news. Y would have snorted, knowing full well the lie that had been disseminated in order to avoid yet  _another_  scandal like his counterpart and Lysandre Labs. "At the request of the family, we were not allowed to report on it until the funeral at sea was held. Official sources say that her son and heir will take over as President of the Aether Foundation, already announcing a striking new direction for the Foundation."

Y sat up at this, unaware of some of  _these_  details, while he finished his coffee off. The young boy, Gladion, appeared on the screen as he did so. "As Lusamine's son, I had a front row seat to her handling of the Foundation, and I still want to continue her work. I know I'm young, but I think, in some sense, that youth, and those who are, perhaps, not considered vital to society, are what is needed for the future of the Foundation. We can't just let ourselves dictate one's worth over their public face.

"I am looking to make the Aether Foundation inclusive of all. I don't care if you've completed your trials, or earned your Leis. If you love Pokémon, and want to care for them, the Aether Foundation will always welcome you. On top of that, we'll offer to sponsor Island Pilgrimages for those determined to complete them. That is our new mission as a Foundation."

"Good kid," spoke one of the patrons of the café. "Little young, but it's definitely something different for the Foundation to announce."

"Sounds to me like he's inviting those hooligans in Team Skull to come work for him!"

"Is that the worst thing? Maybe all those guys needed was an outlet…"

Y sat back once more, an idea for the words he wanted to write coming into his brain. The reporter came on the screen, but the honey-blond man blocked her out, especially since she was mentioning what he already knew about the ceremony to honor the victors of the Hope Leilani and Lanakila Conference. His pen started scratching across the page.

_Dear Grace,_

_I am sure that by the time this letter reaches you, you'll have returned home from your time in Alola. I apologize for not writing all that recently, and not meeting you at Mount Lanakila, but I was recovering from certain things. My fellow companion was actually just released from the hospital yesterday with a broken leg. I hope she'll heal quickly. Regardless, I feel like I have so much to say, yet cannot find the words to say it._

_What I_ can _say, with absolute authority, is how proud I am of our daughter. Having finally had the chance to meet her, myself, I can see how headstrong she is these days. Just seeing her made me smile, even though she wasn't the happiest meeting me. I doubt she'll say anything to you about me, though; she seems just the same as her boyfriend in that respect. They make a good couple, don't you think? Almost reminds me of us…almost. Not really. Hm…maybe I'll come home soon. Perhaps it's time._

_All my love,_

_Michael_

It was a simple letter, and hardly overflowing with flowery sentiments, but it got everything across that he wanted to say. He placed some money down on the table and stood to leave, stretching, despite the pain it caused. It was time to find a place to post the letter. Y quickly whipped around and strode out the door, looking at the bright and peaceful Alolan sun.

A grin stretched his face. He could feel it, quivering down from Mount Lanakila. Even being secluded for so many years hadn't stopped him from being able to observe that. There was a wind of change about to blow through the region. For that, he just solicited his mail at the post office and moved on, eager to see what more of their world would bring.

* * *

"Jessie! James! Meowth! Report!" The call was harsh and biting, snapping the three (really four, if Wobbuffet was counted) to absolute attention in the dark room. Only their faces were illuminated by the glow of the holographic screen that was before them, giving a salute to the boss that was on the screen. "You three have been out of contact for months on your mission. I gave you carte blanche, but I expected you to report in more frequently. You're not one of the Pillars of Team Rocket. Now, why haven't you?"

"Our apologies, sir!" Jessie spoke, not dropping her salute. James thought it best for himself to do the same, each of them staring at their boss. It had been difficult to reach a consensus for how to handle the conversation and briefing before them, but they eventually had. Now they just had to hope for the boss to not chew them out too much. "We've been out of contact for good reason, sir."

"Do enlighten me," Giovanni said, folding his fingers together on the screen in front of them, gazing. James was sure he was trying to find the slightest show of weakness, but the blue-haired man wasn't going to give it to him. They had planned this all perfectly.

"I'm sure you've seen the news reports on the battle in Alola, sir," he told their boss. Giovanni nodded, giving a grunt, but obviously still expecting much more than that. "Well, we were directly involved with it, taking down multiple organizations while we safeguarded the world."

"All for you ta take it over at your pleasure of course, Giovanni, sir," Meowth said. Wobbuffet kept himself from making a noise in the darkness. The leader of Team Rocket continued to observe them and then leaned a back. It showed he was more receptive to their information; it was something James was grateful for.

"Go on," the man said.

"As a result of the battle, Team Skull seems to have become no threat at all," James announced simply. His hand came down from his salute to snap to his side. Jessie and Meowth did the same, though Wobbuffet seemed to have trouble realizing that he should do it as well. "In the week since the battle, there has been no activity from their group at all, just as our plan worked out."

"Yes, the plan has also led to the destruction of ARC, as promised, sir!" Jessie said. Giovanni now sat up, the corners of his lips twitching with what James could only define as pleasure. It made the blue-haired man swallow. "In the battle with the creatures in the news reports, the upper echelons of ARC were destroyed, and their remnants are scattered with no hope of reunion."

"Excellent news, then. We will not have to worry about them interfering with any future plans, then. You've done excellent work. I'm inclined to reward such positive results," Giovanni stated, his fingers curling against each other with a surprisingly loud sound. "Return to base. Perhaps I'll assign you to one of our Pillars for your next mission, when one returns from their own scouting mission."

"Uh, if I may, boss," Jessie spoke out, almost nervously. The man in question turned, leveling his fierce gaze on her as sweat dripped down her forehead. "We were hoping for a vacation, you see. While Alola is quite the region, we've been working non-stop for months and our Pokémon-"

"Yes, I see," Giovanni said, cutting Jessie off. James thought of possibly mentioning Jessie's "alter ego" as Jessilie, and sharing that it would allow them to do more undercover work as another incentive, but he just figured that would make the boss pull them back, instead. That was the exact opposite of what they wanted. "Very well, approved. You have a month of vacation time. I can't have your productivity level going down from burnout. You'd be useless to me, then."

"Yes, sir!" they all said immediately. Giovanni nodded once more, and the connection terminated. Seconds later, a foot stomped on the communication device, crushing it into powder. Then the lights in the room at the trainer's village flicked on. James blinked from the brightness and then cried out as Crabrawler clamped on his head while Inkay floated to his shoulder.

"Craba! Craba!" Crabrawler said, clicking his claws happily. James instantly knew what he wanted and he tossed the hungry crustacean a berry. Said crab broke it in half and offered it to James. He smiled at his Pokémon and accepted it. Jessie just turned, at least as much as she could in Bewear's arms.

"Well, was that good enough?" she snapped to the two visitors in the room. From the wall on the other side, near the light switches, Lionel drew to his full height, all while Aidan scooped up the broken communication cube and went to join him. The tanned man was smirking in their direction.

"More than good enough," Lionel said with a hearty laugh, fingering his charm bracelet. "ARC doesn't care about Team Rocket, but if other organizations have been made aware of our existence, then perhaps its best the rumor spreads on the underground that we're finished."

"At the very least, it will allow us to move about unnoticed," Aidan sighed out, taking his glasses off as he ran a hand through his hair. The blond glanced outside. "Shame. I was almost hoping we could stay in contact more this time, but he's proven to have grown up just fine without me."

"Of course, the bigger problem is how your boss truly came to know of us," Lionel said, pointing at Team Rocket. Their Pokémon all let go of them to look at the two men. James shared an arched eyebrow with Jessie while Meowth peered at both suspiciously. "Probably Michael, somehow."

"We'll have to look into it," Aidan said with another sigh, replacing his glasses on his face as he walked to the door from the cabin. James was just glad that Jessie was able to hold on to the little house, all because she had been runner-up of the Hope Leilani. "I'm sure Michael's influence has spread wide. Now that we know it stemmed beyond just events before his death, it's time to stamp it out."

"Mm," was Lionel's assent. Aidan headed straight for the door and pushed it open, leaving them all behind with nary a word. James felt he had always been a cold one; no wonder the former Brutal twerp had turned out the way he did. Lionel breathed in and turned in his compatriot's direction. "Michael is a real pain…almost like you three are for Ash."

"Hey, what we do to the twerp is none of your business!" Jessie snapped. Lionel laughed, shoving his hands in his pockets as he began to leave the room.

"Maybe not. But if you three ever consider a change of profession, feel free to give us a call. ARC could use people with talents like yours for lots of things. Especially your undercover and performing skills, Miss Jessie," Lionel told them, now waving one of his hands. "We'll be watching the ceremony and be at the festival tonight. If you three change your minds by then, let me know. I'd allow you far more 'carte blanche' than your current boss."

"What about the ceremony?" Jessie asked, right as Lionel snapped the door shut. James watched it a moment longer, finding the offer quite intriguing. He still shrugged, figuring they could discuss it on their much-needed vacation, and turned to answer Jessie's question.

"They hold the victory ceremony to celebrate the runner-up for the Hope Leilani as well. It was in the fine print."

"Ya know Jess didn't read dat, James," Meowth told him. He refrained from rolling his eyes in realization while Jessie gasped loudly. She quickly grabbed the two boys, plus Wobbuffet, and started dragging them off to the bathroom.

"Why didn't you tell me? Another chance to upstage the twerpette? Count me in!" Jessie yelled, cackling madly. James and Meowth just shared a look. "Another chance for the world to share in my beauty and grace! This is beyond wonderful!"

"Gourgeist!"

"Bewaaaaa!"

"Wobbuffet!"

This was going to be a  _long_  vacation.

* * *

Ash Ketchum had fought numerous battles. He'd broken bones. Sacrificed his life a couple times. Overall experienced every emotion that could be found on the spectrum from happiness to grief to downright fear. He was seasoned that way. Serena knew it; she'd seen a lot of it firsthand. However, nothing made him quake and quiver like the sight of his irate mother staring him down. It was like he was a ten-year old kid again, just stuck in her presence.

"Ash Ketchum, young man, explain yourself!" Delia Ketchum snapped. Serena said nothing, already trying to ignore the daggers that were driving into her own skull from  _her_  mother. She hadn't expected them to show up for the victory ceremony, if she was honest. Nor did she expect them to arrive with Professor Oak, of all people, who had been warmly received by Kukui and the Kanto professor's cousin. On the other hand, she should have expected it, given their faces had been plastered all over the news stories about the Day of Stars…again.

It was kind of impossible to ignore, given the extent of the damage. Serena shuddered to think about what could have happened to all those at the stadium here on Mount Lanakila if it hadn't been for Kukui, Akela, Mr. Looker and the International Police.

"Mom, well…uh…what are you talking about?" Ash asked. Pikachu leapt off his shoulder, as if trying to get away, but Delia was having none of that. She stomped her foot down and Pikachu stopped, staring up at her sheepishly.

"You were involved in another world-ending fiasco again, weren't you? You just can't seem to stay out of trouble, can you?" Delia snapped, her hands on her hips. Ash looked to Serena, but given her own mother was stepping forward, she knew he wasn't going to get the support he wanted.

"Both of you," Grace stated, glaring at her daughter. Serena wasn't sure what exactly to say to her mother. There were a lot of topics to be had, and Serena could already hear Bonnie laughing in the distance, before Clemont started to drag her off with Korrina's own laugh. They all stopped at the sounds of the doors opening and all of the professors stepping in. The couple wasn't able to escape, though, even with that possible distraction. "Serena, what happened to the girl that was scared of riding Rhyhorn? Now you're involved with all of this?"

"It's not like we had a choice in all of this…" Serena said, chuckling a little as she scratched the side of her head. Grace sighed and shook her head, but still smiled. That made Serena feel a little better.

"What Serena said, mom. And my girlfriend knows what she's talking about," Ash said, pointing to her and nodding furiously. Pikachu also got in on all of it. Delia continued glaring for a moment and then decided to sigh.

"I know that," she conceded, "but as your mother, it's my job to worry about you."

"Oh, sorry," Ash said, looking a little mollified now. Delia stepped forward, right in between the couple and pulled them close, locking them into a hug.

"Either way, I'm proud of you both," she said, gripping them tighter. Serena's own mother seemed to nod, approving of not only the gesture but everything else as well. "And you, especially, my Pokémon Master! You won your very first League! I'm so excited for you!"

"It's pretty awesome, huh? Even better is that Serena won the Hope Leilani!" Ash said. Delia drew back with a small smile on her face, while Ash refused to let Serena go, hugging her so close she felt her skin heat up and she swallowed, hoping that her mother and his wouldn't read anything too much into it. She could still remember their embarrassing moment atop Latias (who had since returned to her whirlwind adventure somewhere in the world). They, thankfully, didn't seem to register anything.

" _I'm_  very proud, for certain," Grace said, her eyes smiling. "I watched every performance. You've become very skilled, Serena."

"Thanks, mom," Serena spoke, feeling a little embarrassed, especially with Ash pulling her close. She only came out of that state from Delia looking around, as though trying to find someone.

"Where is your friend, Lillie? And Rotom for that matter?" the woman asked. A short distance away, Bonnie seemed to stiffen and look up to Professor Oak. The girl hadn't shown it for the last week, but Rotom's sacrifice had hit her almost as much as Lusamine's death affected Lillie. Serena wasn't even sure how to answer the former, but Ash was.

"Lillie's with her brother. He's the runner-up," Ash answered with a grin, though he looked rather thoughtful at it all. The honey blonde wondered if he was thinking about his father once more, but she didn't dare to bring it up. "They…uh…their mother just…"

"Oh, yes, they reported it on the news. Poor dear," Delia stated, tapping her chin. Ash seemed to swallow thickly. "Well, if she's anything like yourself, dear, she'll be fine. And like everyone, she's always welcome back home in Kanto, if she needs some peace and the comfort of home."

"Yeah. Though, right now, I think she's just trying to figure some things out for the future." Serena would have seconded that if she felt like saying anything about it all. Lillie had been perfectly fine, for the most part; having Komala to spend time with was encouraging her a great deal. Reconnecting with her brother was a boon as well, but she  _had_  spent the better part of the last week wandering around the Aether Paradise or trainer's village while staring off into space, like she had yet to figure something out. At the very least, Serena could confirm that Lillie getting through to her mother in her last moments had softened the blow. Lillie had confessed it herself at the funeral.

"Speaking of, mom," Ash now spoke, jerking Serena out of her thoughts, "I have something I want to share with you when I get back home. I've been putting it off a while, and…"

He trailed off, prompting Pikachu to return to his shoulder and pat him on the face consolingly. "Pikachu…"

"Mm, it's all right, honey," Delia said. She reached out and patted Ash on his free shoulder, her eyes twinkling. Serena had to wonder if she knew already just what Ash wanted to share with her. "I'm sure I can understand. What I don't understand is the League only paying for a single day's lodgings!"

"True enough," Grace sighed out. Serena blinked a couple times, surprised to see their mothers' minds turn to shopping and acting as common tourists would. It was obvious that the League had simply invited them there for the big grand ceremony. The Performer looked to the clock, noticing it was almost time to get ready. "Though, I suppose money should go to all those repairs than paying for our housing. Would you like to go shopping, Delia?"

"Yes, I haven't had much of a chance to sample Alolan culture," Delia spoke, the two women suddenly ignoring their children in favor of walking off to do their bit of shopping on the summit. The whole thing left the couple utterly perplexed. It even left Professor Oak confused, watching as Delia left the stadium entirely, making her way for the festival stands that were still busy and active for the final ceremony of the League and Hope Leilani.

"I'm starting to hope mom tires herself out before the festival at Iki Town tonight…" Ash chuckled out, while Pikachu nodded. Serena rolled her eyes, slipping her hand into his and walking closer to the other group near the door. Professor Oak looked to Bonnie as they did so.

"Now, what were you saying, Bonnie?" the professor asked kindly. Bonnie still looked upset, Dedenne atop her head as he emulated her expression. Squishy and Bluey seemed to remain out of sight.

"I…I'm sorry, professor, but Rotom…well…" Bonnie spoke, both of her palms lifting upwards and showing the backup drive to the professor. The older man blinked, while his cousin and Kukui seemed to walk off. The acting Champion of Alola winked at Ash a bit, who returned a nod, having delivered his answer about the position just that morning. "Rotom was very brave. He took an attack meant for me, and…this is what he left behind."

"Oh…oh my…" Professor Oak said. Ash squeezed Serena's hand, looking concerned at the professor's expression. Serena just waited to see what the man would do. What she didn't expect him to do was reach into his lab coat, pull out a small computer and stick the backup drive into it. Clemont leaned in with Bonnie to see what would happen.

Suddenly, Professor Oak smiled.

"What is it?" Clemont asked in shock and the professor turned his device around. On the screen, to Serena's astonishment, was Rotom's face.

"This is Rotom! Well…more like the essence of Rotom! A program emulating Rotom's wonderful personality!" the computer said. It really was just like the fallen Pokédex, even if not quite the same thing. "As Rotom is about to enter the Ultra Space, Rotom does not expect to return…Rotom is shaking so very much, and does not have many skills, no matter how much Rotom may mock Bonnie for being useless. She's far better than I am.

"So, Rotom will upload everything on to this backup drive, from personality to recorded data, in the hopes that, perhaps, one day I can anno…I mean, aid Bonnie on her journey as a Pokémon trainer. If Rotom does not make it out, then this is the least Rotom can do to aid its very best friend. My friend. Bonnie."

"Rotom…" Bonnie said, almost looking ready to cry. Professor Oak tapped a few buttons, and what looked like the entire compendium of information that Rotom had collected appeared on the screen there. It wasn't quite the real thing, but it was the next best thing. With a smile, Oak held the computer out.

"Well, Bonnie, I believe that Rotom would want you to have this," he said. Bonnie nodded her head, taking the device while Clemont hugged his sister close. "I'm looking forward to seeing what you can do as a Pokémon trainer, especially once that's properly installed to a regular working Pokédex!"

"Th-thank you, Professor Oak!"

Around the lobby, a chime sounded out, giving a call for both Ash and Serena to get ready for the upcoming ceremony. Clemont turned while Korrina, Bonnie and Professor Oak began making their way to the stands. He opened his mouth, like he wanted to tell them something important, but shook his head and refrained from it. He instead closed their distance and hugged them both. "I'm really glad you're both my best friends!"

"Clemont…" Serena breathed. Clemont extricated himself from them, wiping tears from his eyes and throwing his fist into the air. Ash and Serena imitated him, saying everything that needed to be said. Then they turned around, heading for the waiting room, where their fellow runner-ups were. They reached it in no time, the filled stands emptying the halls. Judging from Gladion's sole presence in the waiting room, offering a nod to both, Lillie had already left her brother's side. That suited Serena fine, figuring that Lillie needed more time. Not that they had much time left by the time she had finished dressing in her performance outfit. Another chime sounded out, and Jessie was the first on her feet, shouting something about "spotlight time". Serena could only shake her head at that.

"Ready, then?" Ash asked of his girlfriend, and she nodded, offering him a kiss on the lips. That made him grin at her, and they proceeded down the hallways they had used to reach the battlefield so many times the weeks before.

Stepping along, Serena could hear the loud and booming sounds of the crowd that was approaching. If anything, it was  _more_  packed than it had been during the actual events, as though everyone was excited to celebrate, as opposed to just watching. Deep down, she was fairly certain it had something to do with their, yet again, newfound celebrity status in the region. She supposed that leading the charge during the Day of Stars was enough to garner attention from anyone, especially after their performances at their own individual events.

"Alola, and welcome back!" Maika and Kalas called out together, sounding like they were in perfect sync with one another. It seemed a little humorous to Serena. "What a week…what a week, eh, Maika?"

"Most assuredly! From highs and lows, destruction and reconstruction, the Alola region has been put through the wringer, but is now picking itself up again, just like the grace of a dancer," Maika called out.

"Or the strength of a fighter!" Kalas finished off for her. "And here we are to celebrate those who showed these to us! Our Ali'i ka Leilani and League winners, along with their runner-ups!"

"Woooooooo!" the crowd cheered, making Ash and Serena turn to face each other for just a second. Ahead of them were Gladion and Jessie, keeping as much distance between themselves as they could. The crowd's loudness prevented either of the commentators from moving on, and Serena took her moment to look out to the stadium. There was a large podium there, though no one but a League officiant seemed to be there for the moment.

"Just hear that cry from the crowd! This truly is a worthy celebration! Even bigger than the interrupted party!" Maika called, stirring the audience up even more. Serena could swear she heard some of their friends cheering, though it was truly impossible to distinguish them.

"And there's a chance for an even bigger party tonight, ha ha," Kalas said. His laugh was enough for more excitement, but this time he didn't let it deter him in the slightest. "But if we want to get to that party, let's get this victory ceremony underway! Introducing to everyone, our presenters for the roles. You saw them in the exhibition battle a week ago! Now, here they are to usher in and give the awards to our newest winners: Miss Akela and Champion Kukui!"

"Kukui!" yelled the crowd. Just as many members of the crowd yelled Akela's name, and Serena saw the two old friends stride on to the stage, waving to the crowd around them until they came near to the podium and the League official that was there. She didn't miss the mention of Kukui being Champion for the region, though it didn't surprise her at how fast it all was. Besides, she reasoned to herself, Ash may have won the League, but he had no intentions of sitting around and remaining Champion when there were so many more people to meet and see. She felt the exact same.

"And now, our runner-ups!" Maika called out, continuing on the thread. "These amazing trainers came close to the mark, driving our winners to their limits! For that, we honor those that made it so close: Jessilie and Gladion!"

The blonde cast one look back at Ash, giving a soft smile. He had handled things much better than Lillie, not that she had handled them poorly at all. Having something to push him forward, an ideal to bring Alola together, probably helped with that. The crowd cheered as the two walked on the stage, though hardly as one. Ash and Serena stepped a little more forward. Now she could see the actual stage better, though she could admit she wasn't listening to the words that Akela and Kukui were speaking. Around Jessie's neck was a large ring of flowers, immaculately designed and suiting her perfectly. When she straightened from Akela awarding the flowers, she blew kisses to the crowd, who accepted them all with celebration. Gladion, of course, was far more stoic, accepting the pokeball-shaped medal on his chest, and a clap on the shoulder from Kukui.

They may have just been the runner-ups, but they were just as recognized and celebrated. The cheers continued for a solid few minutes, mostly because of Jessie soaking in the adoration, no doubt fueled from what seemed like James and Meowth selling "Jessilie memorabilia" in the stands. When Gladion finally had the thought to try and trip her, leading to some laughs, the ceremony was allowed to continue on.

"Now, before we introduce our winners, those who have ascended to this highest position," Kalas said, his voice solemn and full of reverence, "we have a few things to say. To that, I'll turn things over to Miss Akela and Professor Kukui."

The crowd murmured to themselves, and even Ash looked to Serena and Pikachu, at least until Pikachu whapped him with his tail. That made Ash realize what the announcement was with a grin. Miss Akela strode forward first. "As many of you are well aware, I was once a winner of the Ali'i ka Leilani until I stepped down six years ago, following certain events.

"In that time, I focused on my fashion industry, watching as many Ali'i ka Leilani came and went. None of them truly stayed, though. Even now, our new Ali'i ka Leilani, one that I am most overjoyed to bequeath the position to, has many things she needs to do away from Alola. As a result, I plan to retake the position in the official day-to-day capacity. I have been away from the light for too long, and I am happy that she pulled me back into it."

"In fact, I guess we could say this event is a whole new Dazzling Gleam for Alola, given to us by the Tapus and our winners, both," Kukui spoke out, grinning as he spoke to the crowd. Serena watched Akela, whose eyes looked into the hallway towards her. It filled the honey blonde's heart with joy to know what she'd done for the woman who had turned her back on so many things. "As of now, we've decided to open the Alola League once a year, to give a new way for people to take part for society, even changing the rules just a bit.

"What I mean is…well, believe it or not, but recent events have made me see things a bit differently, if I'm honest. Especially since one of our Kahunas outright refused the positions we'll be announcing, ha ha." Kukui was laughing, but no one else seemed to really understand the joke whatsoever. Not that the man was joking. Serena knew that he was being very serious about things. "We've been very divided as a region, and I hope this very event will bring more and more people to prominence. In fact, in the coming months, following a discussion with the Kahunas, we've chosen to change a few things in the trial and Island Pilgrimage system! Our hope is to really make this a fun experience!

"Enough babbling, though! Like Miss Serena, Ash Ketchum has also refused the title of permanent Champion, and given it to me in his place. As acting Champion, allow me to introduce you to your Elite Four members, chosen by myself!" Kukui's hand was thrown out, and a smaller platform moved upwards from the middle of the stage, revealing four people.

"I guess Nanu really did turn it down…He's so weird, huh, Pikachu?" Ash chuckled out. Serena just smiled, watching as Kukui introduced all four, standing there strong. Right away, she started her viewing with Hala, his arms folded as he nodded at the crowd. Serena could swear she heard Hau's cheering. Then there was Olivia, winking at the crowd; the honey blonde could only imagine how Kiawe looked, watching the spectacle. Most surprising was Acerola, waving chipperly at the crowd, having accepted the position in lieu of Nanu. Lastly was Kahili, supported on crutches. She had been severely injured, but Serena's father seemed to have taken good care of her. She was smiling, especially as her eyes moved toward their hallway, looking at Ash.

The crowd loved them, many within it calling for the fact that they would challenge them, if they could. However, it didn't take long for them to quiet, everyone on the edge of anticipation.

"And now, the moment you've all been waiting for," Maika said, speaking into the silent stadium, letting the tension build. "We present to you, your new Ali'i ka Leilani, Serena!"

"And your Alola League Champion, Ash Ketchum!"

The two took one more glance at each other and walked forward, stepping into the blinding light of the stadium. The second their feet hit the stage together, the crowd roared with cheering and applause. Even their fellow combatants from before were clapping, though Jessie was doing so with a resigned sigh. Serena's eyes flicked upwards, towards the Champion's Box, all of them watching the events. Some of them looked roughed up, and it reminded Serena of her and Ash's injuries, but otherwise they were fine. The week had allowed them to heal adequately.

More importantly, was the huge group straight ahead in the stands, holding a massive banner in the air, drawn by Maka. It was flapping around the air as she acted as though she were filming the whole thing. Ash's old companions (and her friends, as well) were gathered and cheering, themselves being the ones to wave the banner. Sawyer had grabbed hold of Miette, while Seamus and the rest of Team Nova were connected in a chain, swaying back and forth with their loud cheers. Serena stared Miette straight in the eyes, seeing the challenge in them that renewed their rivalry. Gary and Alain were clapping politely, while Clemont restrained Bonnie, who likewise was surprisingly restraining Squishy.

Finally, there was Hau, pumping his fists in the air while he had an arm slung around Lillie. The blonde sat there, clapping politely, with a smile on her face. The couple reached the center.

"Serena," Akela spoke to the crowd as she took a crown made of beautiful flowers, "for your grace on the battlefield, and your ability to make many smile, people and Pokémon alike. I present to you the Kalaunu ka Leilani, as a symbol of your status as the new Ali'i ka Leilani."

"I'm honored," Serena spoke, bowing her head. Akela then placed the crown atop it, and when Serena straightened, everyone cheered. They then turned their attentions to Ash while Akela's face shone brightly with her renewed smile. Kukui now took the large trophy, bedecked with flowers and the four different colors that represented the Tapus, and strode to Ash.

"And Ash, for your bravery on the battlefield, through every trial you have faced, living and growing stronger, I present to you the first ever Alola League Trophy, our new Champion!" To that, the crowd was even louder. Ash's hands were almost shaking, but he and Pikachu wore the giddiest smiles on their faces as, finally, their hands clasped around the trophy, and together the two of them held it high.

"Yeah!" he cried out, letting it gleam in the sun. Everyone stomped the floor, cheering wildly, and Serena noticed their mothers and the two Oaks sitting together, Delia wiping at her eyes. Then Ash turned towards the Champion's Box and pointed upwards. It was like a message: we'll battle next. Only they understood it.

As for Serena, she turned towards her friends, focusing on Lillie, thinking on the journey they had had together. How the blonde had so wanted to see her first Ceremony, and had now seen it all through to the end. No matter the pain. No matter the loss. She had seen it through, and she had finally smiled. Through that smile, Serena could see the decision that rested sharply in her eyes. Seeing the end result of that journey had brought Lillie to a decision for herself.

The blonde smiled, standing and clapping her hands rapidly as Hau stared at her. For Serena, her heart bloomed.

That one person that was smiling back at her, full of joy, making the person next to her do the same;  _she_  made all the difference in the world. Like Ash before her, she turned to look at Aria and nodded at her.

At last, Serena knew: her dream was finally on its way to truly become reality.

* * *

"Okay, Komala, we have that thing, right?"

"Malaaaaa…" Komala yawned out. Ash stopped just outside the door, cheers still radiating from the stadium, even hours after the ceremony had finished. His hand was aching from all those he had greeted, but at least he was finally able to break away thanks to Team Rocket creating a distraction (while remaining in disguise, of course). It hadn't been all that successful, and only served to put Jessie more in the spotlight, but at least he, Serena and Gladion had finally managed to get away (even if Pikachu got separated from him for the time being), something that all of the Elite Four, Kukui and Akela were able to do much earlier. Now, however, Ash had returned to the trainer's village, hoping to rendezvous with his friends, only to hear Lillie's voice from inside their cabin.

"Good! It might not be everything, but we'll figure it out…we should really snag some food at the festival, too!" Lillie's voice echoed out, and Ash placed his hand on the door. The others had yet to rendezvous here, though he had an inkling that they might have just decided to go on to Iki Town. At the very least, he'd said a short goodbye to his mother in the hall, his mother wanting to shop more, and both of them knowing that he'd be returning home quite soon. He just wanted to finish this journey the way he'd started it, and she understood (while saving herself from buying a ticket and instead taking the League's transportation back home). Regardless, Ash decided to knock, causing Lillie to jump and turn, slinging her bag on her shoulders. "Oh, Ash! Congratulations!"

"Hey, the others haven't been here, have they?" Ash asked, smiling at the blonde. Her hair was back in a ponytail again, rimmed with a flower tie.

"I think Clemont mentioned something about taking the first League helicopter to Iki Town. Everything's looking really pretty, there! Pulled out all the stops for everyone," Lillie giggled out. Ash watched her, glad to see her filled with the life she usually held. Regardless of her sadness, she almost seemed a little lighter now. That, at the very least, was heartening. Ash stepped in, noticing that some of her items were tossed, like she'd been packing in a hurry. "I'm really looking forward to it."

"So am I! It'll be great to relax and unwind," Ash said, offering her another smile. Then he closed the distance, reaching up and placing a hand on the back of her head. It was more instinct than anything, but he pulled her straight towards his chest, where she squeaked with surprise. "Lillie, I want you to know you can tell us anything, right?"

"I…I know," she said softly, reaching up to grab hold of his vest and tug on it.

"I've been meaning to say this, but…I know what it's like to lose someone…family…and there are just some times you need alone," he told her. She seemed to respond to that, removing her hands from his vest and hugging him a little. "But I wanted you to know that we understand what you're going through. So, don't hold back. If there's something you have to say, just say it, okay?"

"Yes," Lillie responded, pulling back with glistening eyes. "I will. There's just…something I have to do first. After the festival. First, we have to celebrate everything: you and Serena winning, us saving everyone. Even the Team Skull people are excited. I saw them helping the town out when I was there; they're really useful."

"I bet they are!" Ash laughed out. Thinking about Team Skull inevitably brought Ash's thoughts to Guzma. The man had been at Lusamine's funeral, and Gladion had spoken to him at the time, but the man was unable to say much. He had put his hands to work rebuilding things around Melemele, Ash had been told, but other than that, he had no idea what the man had been up to. He just hoped he'd be at the celebration. There was another knock on the door.

"Pikapi, Pikpi," Pikachu called out cheerfully, and Ash noticed that Serena had arrived, changed back into her regular clothes with a smile.

"Ready to go, you two?" she asked, pointing out of their shared cabin in the trainer's village. Lillie nodded and walked past Ash, hooking her arm with Serena's as the two girls left. Ash watched them, absentmindedly following after. It felt peaceful like this, the two girls talking gleefully, even as they got on the final League helicopter. Ash took Pikachu into his lap, scratching behind his ears as he watched the two girls converse during their travel.

Their helicopter wasn't the only one arriving in Hau'oli City, though it was one of the few left to land, especially as the sun was sinking on the horizon, bathing the Melemele landscape in a golden glow. Lillie stopped for a moment upon arrival, staring out at the ocean, and she breathed in with a smile and nod before deciding to lead them all to Iki Town. The closer they got, the busier it got, the stars finally out and looking as normal as ever by the time they were ascending the hill.

"Yo, toss it here!"

"Watch it! A Team Skull Fire Special!" the jubilant cries of the Team Skull members reached Ash's ears, and he could tell that the whole party was already completely in full swing by this point. Clapping followed the announcement, along with some music.

"Yeah, Team Skull's very own musical group! We practiced real hard, yo!"

"Hey, bring the drums over and join in! They've got a real Alola jam going here!" called a villager of Iki Town. Ash looked to Serena, who smiled at him as their trio ran up the hill and finally saw the sprawling sight of Iki Town. Considering the presence of Team Skull there, it looked completely different from the last time the former ruffians had been there.

Lanterns were strung about, all over the place, and the whole village was practically packed with people. To one side, near Hala's house, was a table with plenty of food, which May was leaning against carefully. Bonnie was also there, piling a plate high for herself. They weren't alone, given the multitude of Team Skull members singing, dancing, playing music and having a jovial time. Even the villagers were welcoming. For those playing with their fire, Kiawe was there, instructing them, while Mallow and Lana seemed to be trying out musical lessons.

Dropping their bags at the entrance, with a much more audible thud than Ash would have thought from Lillie's, the three companions headed into the thick of the party. There were a lot of familiar faces strewn about the square of Iki Town, to the point that Ash was surprised they were able to fit all of them in so handily. He could see people dancing on the stage and around it, including (to Ash's immense surprise) Brock and Aria. Misty and Iris were shaking their heads at the foot of the stage. Then there was Plumeria, clapping in tune with her brothers and sisters' tunes. She looked happy, having swapped her skull adornments for a bandanna, and having removed much of her makeup.

" _There_  you are!" cried the sharp voice of Maka, running through the crowd with a chipper expression. She wasn't alone, as Ash noticed that Keoni was right behind her. He nodded to Ash, a glass of juice in his hands and bandages on his cheeks from his defense of Po Town. It was like a sense of acknowledgement to Ash. "Come on Serena, you promised you'd be my heroine, and I want to work out all the details before you get a chance to run away. You're coming too, financier…producer…whatever you are! Come on!"

Just like that, Maka had nabbed Serena and Keoni's hands, dragging them off to who knew where. The only thing Serena was able to do before then was send all her Pokémon out to party. Ash liked that idea, calling his own team out, and they scattered. Smiling at seeing them all off, Ash noticed he'd lost track of Lillie, but shrugged and weaved his way through the crowd. So many people had gathered, it was almost impossible to keep track of them, if he was honest. He did notice Nanu there, smirking in a corner with some silent Skull grunts, who seemed to be trying to emulate him. He also got waylaid briefly by Kahili, who clopped him on the back with a crutch, only to be propped up by Hapu and Mina with a sigh (mostly from Hapu). Even Paul was there, though he kept to himself, which was even more starkly contrasted by the fact that  _Alain_  was mingling.

"Yo, 'bout time you showed up, kid!" shouted an all too recognizable voice. Ash turned, and saw Guzma standing there, hands in his pockets as he leaned against a tree on the edge of the forest. The man was watching him, but his body wasn't full of any aggression towards him. Ash took a step forward. Guzma reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. "Look…uh…Damn…"

"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to, Guzma," Ash said. He just walked forward and held his hand out. "I understand."

"Tch, right," Guzma scoffed out, but he didn't take the hand. He was looking towards the side, and Ash saw just what he was staring at: Kukui and Akela, chatting with Hala. There was a look of yearning in the man's eyes, and he shook his head. "I really screwed up. What is  _wrong_  with you, Guzma? Lettin' someone like that into my head…hurtin' my brothers and sisters…"

"You know we forgive you, dumbass," Plumeria finally spoke, not a single sardonic vibe present. She was approaching them both, her presence having drawn the attention of Guzma's previous friends and master. "In the end, it all worked out. I mean, look at how happy they all are. If you hadn't done what you did, we wouldn't be here right now, you know?"

"Damn it, Plumeria, I'm tryin' to punish myself here and yer just ruinin' it!"

"You're  _trying_  to look all stoic and cool," Plumeria shot back, pointing at the man's chest. "Well, it won't work! I know you better than anyone, boss, and to hell with puffing up your ego."

"Yo! I am your boy, Guzma! You don't talk to the boss that way!"

"Ha ha, still the same, eh, Guzma?" Kukui laughed out. Ash stepped back now, watching as the trio of Kukui, Akela and Hala walked their way over. The two younger individuals served as the front, quickly approaching the man that was once their friend. It was an air fraught with tension, and Ash found himself unable to look away, even as Clemont screamed for Chespin and Decidueye to come back with the food in the background. They remained staring, and then Kukui removed his hat, rubbing the back of his head. "Look, Guzma…I'm sorry."

"Nothin' to apologize for," Guzma said, folding his arms. "We both screwed up, I guess."

"If you say so…" Silence followed, until Akela sighed loudly.

"Honestly, you boys are impossible!" the woman said, walking over and grabbing ahold of Kukui's hand, bringing it over to Guzma's own and slapping it on top of that. "We're all sorry. We made a promise, just like this, to be friends no matter the paths we took. Not a single one of us kept that promise.  _All_  of us lost our way."

"She has a point," Kukui grinned out at Guzma. The man grinned right back.

"Always keepin' us in line, wasn't she?" the leader of Team Skull responded with his grin. "Though nowadays I heard you got a wife to do that."

"Yeah, she's around somewhere," came the laughing response. Ash had to smile at it all, just the same way that Hala was doing so, nodding his head. Guzma appeared to catch his old master's eye, but neither spoke a word, giving a silent acceptance to one another. There was a shuffling in the crowd, and Ash heard someone coming up next to him. The someone turned out to be Gladion, approaching Guzma with a stern expression. The man didn't realize right away, still in the moment with his former friends.

"Well, now that you stubborn boys have gotten that out of the way, how about we make another promise, hm?" Akela spoke, looking to the two. "That even though our paths wavered, and our bonds broke, now that we're together, we support each other, no matter what."

"Yeah, all right," Guzma said.

"Well, if you're going to support each other, then I want Team Skull to support the Aether Foundation," Gladion spoke aloud. Guzma adopted a look of near disgust on his face as he looked at Gladion incredulously. "Not in the same way my mother had it, you know. I want you to turn to hard work, Guzma. Work with me in a way that only Team Skull could: to rescue injured Pokémon and improve the lives of the citizens of Alola. If we work together, I know we can make the region into one of beauty, more in line with what she would have wanted before all the sickness."

Guzma blinked, hearing Gladion's offer, but Ash wasn't sure if he was comprehending it. Then, Kukui broke the pact made with their hands and slapped his friend on the back. "It's hard stuff, but you've always been good at using your strength, cousin."

"It's about all he's good for," Plumeria mocked. Gladion held his own hand forward now, while Plumeria came to her boss' side, standing with him. It was a strange reversal in a way. Guzma looked between the two, and then to Akela and Kukui, the both of them nodding. Hala had turned away, no doubt beaming with approval. Finally, Guzma sighed.

"Aight, aight!" he cried and he slapped his hand on Gladion's. "Ya have full use of your boy Guzma and Family's resources."

"That's such a stupid name," Plumeria snorted out. "I know a skull is too macabre for this kind of work, but you have  _got_  to be more creative than that, boss."

"Yo, Plumeria, no talkin' back!" Guzma snapped at her and she began to laugh, sounding like ocean waves as she did so, or flowers swaying in the breeze. Ash smiled and began to turn away, leaving all of them to iron their details out, whatever they were. He was, however, called back for a single second. "Yo! Kid!"

"Huh?" Ash asked, looking over at Guzma, who was smirking at him, having grabbed a pokeball and tossing it up and down in the air.

"Next time yer ready to rumble, just give your boy Guzma a call. I gotta even the score. Whaddya say, Ash?" Ash blinked, almost stunned at Guzma's statement, but then he grinned, throwing a fist up.

"You got it!" he cried, and then Ash walked away towards the food table. He wasn't there long, with Pikachu scampering up to him, before he felt a tap on his back. The raven-haired trainer whipped around, some food in his mouth, and he saw Lionel there, a small grin on his face. In the background, Bonnie was running around, chasing after Dedenne and Sandshrew, while the others, including a very awkward Clemont and Korrina (plus Rocky and Astrid, it seemed), danced around them. "Lionel. I didn't know you were still around."

"Ah, just for a little," Lionel admitted, picking off a vine of grapes and eating them. "Wanted to see you before we were off, though. League's already put us on another assignment, of our own choosing, of course."

"Nothing world ending, is it?"

"Depends? Are you heading for the region?" Lionel joked out. The two laughed heartily, though it was drowned by the sound of the music in the square. Once they stopped, Lionel looked up towards the moon, smiling a bit. "No, we're doing some work to see what other organizations Michael may have influenced. At this point, I'd rather not have another incident on this level for as long as it can be helped."

"So, you guys will probably be going deep undercover?" Ash asked, placing his plate down on the table. Clemont and Korrina had stopped dancing, with the breathy inventor stumbling over towards the spread of food. It seemed Bonnie had stopped running around by this point and had placed herself at the table, as well, now moving closer to their little conversation. "Guess we really won't see each other a while."

"I suppose not, but I'll try to actually keep in touch as much as I can," Lionel stated. He reached forward, and Ash already anticipated the hug when he took the man's hand. The two stayed there for a moment, and Ash felt a sense of pride from the older man. It helped that no words were being exchanged. Ash nodded, and they drew back while Clemont and Bonnie approached. "If you see Team Rocket around, tell them they're welcome to join ARC anytime. Last I left them, they seemed to be the life of the party on Mount Lanakila, so I don't think they'll be coming here."

"We'll try, assuming they're not trying to steal Pikachu," Ash laughed out. Lionel nodded, and then looked down to Bonnie and the two Zygarde Cores in her bag.

"You two behave yourselves. I don't want to hear you've gone to another region anytime soon, understood?" the man scolded the two. Bluey turned away, but Squishy tried to look innocent. Bonnie was the most innocent of them all, though, picking both of them up and twirling around.

"No need to worry about that! Squishy and Bluey are gonna go back to Kalos with me and help me become an amazing trainer. Right, Squishy?" Bonnie said gleefully. Clemont's mouth dropped open.

"Bonnie! Squishy is a legendary Pokémon, you can't just…"

_Well, I have no problems with it,_  Squishy said. Bonnie's grin widened, while Clemont's mouth practically hit the ground.  _Besides, Bluey can always monitor the region._

_Since when did_ you  _start calling me, Bluey?_

"That doesn't matter! Look, Dedenne, we already have Squishy on our team! We're gonna be so ready when we take on Kalos in just a month! Get ready, Clemont."

"I look forward to the challenge, Bonnie," her brother stated, swiftly recovering from his state of shock at a legendary Pokémon agreeing to be on his sister's team. "But I won't go easy on you. I might not be on the level of Ash and Serena, but as a Gym Leader, I'm not supposed to be. You'll see, when I go back to being in charge of the Gym. It's been too long."

"Maybe we should battle again, huh?" Ash suggested. Clemont looked at him in challenge, both of them agreeing to take that bet for another time. Ash turned to look at Lionel, but the man was already gone. It seemed to be rather expected, the man not wasting any more time than was necessary. Even more expectant was Hau running up.

"You and me, Ash! Challenge time!" the boy yelled to him with his perpetual grin. Pipi was floating next to him, and his entire team was fanned out. Ash's own team came to his side. "We'll see which team can eat the most amount of malasadas!"

"You're on!"

It was pure anarchy. Mostly because by the time they were finished, numerous Skull members, including Guzma, had joined in on the chaos. Even Kukui decided to get in on the action, Burnet cheering him on loudly (and sounding a little tipsy), while some left the party, the festivities continuing all too late into the night. By the end, Hau ended up victorious, even Ash unable to eat another bite. Only Decidueye had come close to outlasting Hau and his team, just a singular malasada short. That sole event ended with Ash's head in Serena's lap as she stroked his hair late at night, when the fires and embers from the party were burning down, and Team Skull's snores droned through the air.

"Work everything out with Maka?" he muttered sleepily. Serena nodded.

"She says that she's going to be working with Miss Akela, apparently, filming promotions for her next line of clothing, but when she's done and she feels she has the experience, we'll start filming. Keoni's even agreed to it…though he's still planning to help out at Po Town before 'trying his hand at Contests'…or so he says."

"Mm, that's nice…" Ash said. Serena's laugh indicated that she agreed with his tiredness after their exciting day. They weren't the only ones falling asleep. Some of their group had returned to Hau'oli City, while others remained splayed out on the floor. Ash just fell into his slumber on Serena's lap, until, sometime later, he heard the clicking of a door and awoke once again. Blinking, Ash saw a brief white flash, and he sat up. Serena stirred, herself rubbing at her eyes.

"What's going on…?" she asked. Ash didn't answer. He just moved towards the door, a lethargic Pikachu joining him as he exited Hala's house, stepping over a silent Hau (in and of itself, strange) and looked towards the forest. Sure enough, it seemed like Lillie was walking into the forest, and Ash chose to give pursuit. From the sounds near the house, he wasn't alone in that intention.

In some way, he was hit with a sense of déjà vu, chasing after Tapu Koko that first night in Alola. Now, it was his last night, and instead of chasing the guardian deity, he was following Lillie until, at last, he arrived at the bridge, the waterfall cascading downwards through the ravine. Standing there, at the edge, with Komala on her shoulder, was Lillie. She had to have heard him coming, because she turned.

"I had a feeling you'd come here," Lillie said, smiling. "It's the first place we met, you know?"

"Well, yeah, but we didn't meet officially until Melemele Meadow," Ash pointed out to her. She laughed a little and nodded while Komala yawned. He stepped forward, coming to her side and staring the ways down, towards where Tapu Koko was, the guardian deities having returned to a state of peace. "Is there a reason you came here?"

"Mm," she vocalized, but didn't answer. Sounds in the brush behind them indicated the arrival of not only Serena, but Clemont and Bonnie as well. They all walked forward to join with Lillie as she stood there, smiling happily. "It's amazing what a different perspective can give you. This area is still the same as it was when I met you, Ash…but at the same time, it means something entirely different to me."

"That's how it is with everything," Clemont commented. Lillie nodded, and she spun around, her body framed by the beautiful moon as she smiled.

"Standing in the same place after a long journey can make everything seem so different!" Lillie said, throwing her arms wide. Ash watched her, realizing that Lillie, herself, was so different. She had grown, blossomed into a beautiful woman with no regrets. "I'm going to travel the world! Nothing about competing or anything…but I want to see everything! Do everything! Look at everywhere with different eyes. I think Nebby would want that, too…that way, we'll all have lots to talk about when we reunite.

"And I'm not changing my mind on this! I've already told my brother that I'll leave by boat tomorrow. I know you'll leave by air, but I want to travel the sea, find all it has to offer," Lillie continued on. Ash couldn't help but smile at her. It felt like she was asking permission in a sense, but Ash didn't need to give it. Lillie was going her own way, just as they all would the moment the plane they were taking tomorrow landed at their own destination. "This is something I'm doing for myself, as Lillie. And I hope, one day, we'll all reunite, even if we keep in touch…we'll be that big, happy family again."

"We'll always be a family, Lillie!" Bonnie said, walking forward and throwing her hand in. "You, me, Clemont, Serena and Ash! No matter how far apart we are, or for how long!"

"Of course. That's what family is all about," Clemont agreed, putting his own hand in, as well. Serena did the same wordlessly, while Ash finished off. Lillie smiled brilliantly and threw hers in last. They flung them to the air. Their journey through Alola had almost reached its close at last.

* * *

The following morning was filled with a flurry of activity; truly business as usual following any sort of major party, Ash realized. Team Skull, or Guzma and Family as the big boss liked to consistently remind them, worked tirelessly the whole morning to clean the mess up from the party. Part of it was on Gladion's orders which, judging from Plumeria's shouting, also meant that Team Skull would be moving to the Aether Paradise soon for their first assignment. Ash could only give a nod to Guzma at all of that.

The man was still regarded warily for all that he had done, but Ash knew that day by day, like Alpha Squad before him, he'd be able to reach the respect that he deserved. For now, he was just moving forward.

Though, in the end, that wasn't the only thing that Ash had to deal with. He'd been woken at the crack of dawn in order to see all of his old friends, each one of them congratulating him once more; even Iris, who had admitted that he "wasn't such a kid after all", did so. Ash wanted to retort that this change had happened long ago, but he bit back his rebuttal. In the end, none of their customary farewells actually surprised him any.

What did surprise him were some of the groups they were pairing off into. All of his former female companions but Dawn announced their intention to go to Kanto for whatever reason, while it seemed Dawn had declared herself as heading to Kalos long-term, after visiting her mother in Sinnoh. Serena and Miette apparently took that as an instant challenge. Judging from Dawn's expression, it was exactly what she wanted. Likewise, Seamus had extended an offer for Sawyer to come and speak at the school, the boy taking it enthusiastically. Rocky also offered it to Astrid (who Ash could admit to forgetting was there that morning) but she said she didn't have the time, planning to challenge the Sinnoh League, having been impressed by Cynthia in battle.

Similarly, Gary informed Ash that Paul had left extremely early that morning, stating an intention to challenge the Island Pilgrimage. Apparently, as Ash had discovered, he'd lost that battle with Kahili long ago, and wanted to challenge her again. The thought made Ash laugh, even while his friend and former rival told him he was planning to do some research with an already departed Burnet into more dimensional spaces. Alain was the least surprising of them all, saying that he was heading back with Professor Sycamore, though Mairin would be starting her own Showcase journey in the coming weeks. Most surprising of them all, however, was Brock and Aria's farewell.

"My dear Kalos Queen, wait for my return! I will yet be by your side!" the smitten man said. Naturally, Croagunk was waiting, until Aria seemed to glare at him and he shrunk back.

"I'll look forward to our reunion, Brock. Though…perhaps we shouldn't bet on me being Kalos Queen much longer, hm?" the pinkette said with a wink in Brock's direction. That made the man pass out all on his own, leaving Croagunk to drag him off with the rest. Once they had all gone to hop their respective rides (the League was shuttling them all off to alleviate the burden on the reopened airport), Ash and his friends were left alone in Iki Town, finishing off preparations in order to get to Hau'oli City.

The only strange part was that Hau was inexplicably missing for whatever reason.

"Last time in Iki Town, huh?" Serena commented, breathing in at the cusp of the hill, heading downwards. Ash had to admit that Lillie had had a point the previous night: it looked so different now than it had at the start of the journey.

"Well, no use waiting around! Come on!" Lillie called, bouncing along down the hill. Ash laughed loudly, grabbing Serena's hand and bouncing with her after Lillie. Bonnie dragged Clemont with her, holding tight to the drive that she planned to use for her future Pokédex. Meyer and Korrina had departed the night before for Gym-related business, stating that they knew the siblings would want to do the same as Ash in completing their journey on their own terms. In no time, the group was racing down the hill, through the forest and past the Pokémon school. Ilima waved to them from the courtyard, receiving waves in turn, but the group didn't stop until they'd reached the docks, finding a large boat sitting at the harbor, with people boarding it, and a departure party waiting for them there in the form of Kukui, Hala and Gladion.

"Alola, cousin!" Kukui cried out to them, raising a hand. Ash also raised his own hand in greeting, as well, stepping near. Miss Akela seemed to be there as well, speaking to a man with white hair that Serena and Bonnie seemed to recognize, greeting with a wave. "So…"

"Yep, time for us all to leave," Ash said, hitching his backpack on his shoulders while Pikachu jumped to his other shoulder. He held his hand out with a grin. "Professor Kukui, Hala, thanks for everything. If I'd never come to Alola…well, I think we've grown a lot. Right, buddy?"

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed. Hala nodded, folding his arms and saying nothing a moment, while Kukui took his hand and shook it. That action complete, Hala's arms now came forward, carrying forth a box in his hands.

"Indeed," the older man spoke, a small grin on his face, "and if you'd never come, why, I'm not sure where Alola would be."

"No worries," Ash stated, throwing his hands behind his head a moment. Hala nodded, as though agreeing, but he continued to grin as Serena and Lillie stood at Ash's side.

"Perhaps not now, but if not for your bravery…well, let's just say, as Kahunas, we have a gift for you. Think of it as our own parting gift in celebration," Hala shared, finally opening the box. Ash's eyes widened as a gleam shined out from within, revealing four Z-Rings, each in a different style of the islands. "They may not be champion Z-Rings, but they're made with all the love and care we Kahunas could muster. As Melemele's Kahuna, I humbly gift them as thanks."

Ash looked to his fellow, former champions, and then all four reached forward, gripping for the Z-Rings they were most used to, grinning at one another. Ash slid his on, the coolness of the ring feeling like it was returning home, and Ash grabbed for his Z-Crystals, placing them on the surface and watching them sink in. Serena was doing the same while Lillie briefly bowed down with thanks to the Kahuna as Komala traveled with her, the large man returning the gesture. Gladion, meanwhile, was facing his sister as he covered his own ring up, clearly trying to get her attention.

"You're sure about this, Lillie?" Gladion asked of her. Lillie straightened her bag and nodded.

"I am. I need to travel for myself. And Komala will be by my side," Lillie said, smiling at her ever-dependable Pokémon. He yawned loudly, gripping tighter to his trainer's arm. Gladion breathed out and smiled at his sister before taking her into a hug.

"Be safe. Traveling isn't the same out there without people like Ash and the others," the blond told her.

"Yeah! Well, she won't be alone, 'cause I'm coming with her!"

"Rairairai!" Ash whipped around, and he wasn't the only one. They all turned, and Hala cracked an eye open, stowing the empty box in his robe, as Hau came steamrolling across the docks, a huge bag of malasadas hanging behind him, with Pipi carrying a smaller bag. He skidded to a stop, panting heavily, his hands on his knees.

"If you'll let me, of course, Lillie!" Hau said, straightening up with a giant grin on his face. "I've got the malasadas to spare! They're what took me so long! I know you want to see lots of things, and so do I! I've lived in Alola all my life, but imagine how much fun Pipi and the others could have if we all go on a great journey together!"

Lillie stood there, staring at Hau with widened eyes, and then she smiled, her eyes gleaming over every inch of their surface. She walked forward and quickly embraced the boy, malasadas and all, holding him tight before drawing back and offering him a kiss on the cheek. "All right, Hau! Let's go together!"

"Aw, yeah!" Hau said, pumping his fists. Gladion rolled his eyes, just as a loud sound began to fill the air. Ash looked up with the others, seeing a plane come moving in towards the airport on the other side of the docks. Their departure from Alola was nearly there, something Kukui clearly realized, because he began to walk off towards Akela, who offered them yet one more nod. Serena returned it. "We're gonna have awesome adventures, Pipi!"

"Raichurai!" Pipi said, swaying back and forth giddily in the air. Hau then faced towards Gladion and Ash.

"Don't you worry, guys! We're gonna have lots more adventures, then we'll all battle again!" the energetic boy called, throwing his hand out. Gladion smirked and shared the sentiment, though it looked almost like he wanted to crush Hau's hand. Ash tried to prevent that from happening by quickly putting his own hand in.

"All right, let's promise. We take care of ourselves, and one day we'll meet and battle again. Until then, we all promise to do our very best!" Ash called. Gladion smiled and Hau grinned before they, too, threw their hands in the air. Hau then pointed to his grandfather as a foghorn, indicating boarding for the boat that Lillie and he were going to take, sounded out.

"You, too, tutu! We'll be back to Alola someday, and then we'll really make you go all out! By then, I'll be worthy enough to become a Kahuna, myself! That's my promise!" Hala seemed to like that, for he gave a booming laughter and walked forward to embrace his grandson.

"That is something I'll wait for." They were the exact words Hau wanted to hear.

"Maybe you'll even challenge me," Kukui responded with his own grin, offering a hand to the boys. They all took it in turn. The foghorn blew once again.

"Hau, hurry! We don't want to miss the ship!" Lillie shouted. She quickly spun around, grinning just as much as Hau, as she quickly launched forward, gathering all four of her family into a hug. She spoke no words, pouring all emotion into that momentary hug before she disengaged and ran for the large boarding ramp. Hau quickly sped after her, Pipi floating right behind her. They jumped on the ramp, the familiar-looking excitement of a new adventure coming off of all their pores and expressions. The second they touched down, the foghorn blew again and the ramp retracted.

Ash turned in the ship's direction, hearing the plane touch down on the asphalt over a ways, but he ran down the docks. Serena, Clemont and Bonnie were right behind him, trying to keep up to the ship that was now pulling away swiftly. Soon, he reached the edge of the docks, briefly looking back to see Hala and Gladion making their way towards the building that served as the lobby for both the ferry between islands and the planes. Ash cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Goodbye, Lillie! Goodbye, Hau!" he shouted over the ocean, causing some Wingull to scatter. "Have lots of fun! Lots of adventures!"

"Pika pika!"

"Take care of each other!" Serena shouted to them. The duo ran to the edges of the ship, waving to all of them with tears in Lillie's eyes. "Love each other, no matter what! Always be there for one another!"

"We'll definitely meet again! Stop by in Kalos whenever you want a battle!"

"Maybe  _we'll_  meet each other, too!" Bonnie called. Dedenne and Squishy cheered out. All of their goodbyes yelled, Lillie leaned over the edge of the railing as the ship began to pick up speed.

"Of course!" she yelled out to them. "Ash, Serena, Clemont, Bonnie! These last few months have some of my most favorite memories ever! I will never forget them! I'll never forget the happiness, the sadness, the pain, the fear…none of it! I'll never forget meeting any of you! You helped me grow so much! Helped me to find who I was, and you all loved me, so, so much! So…

"Thank you for everything! I love you all!"

They were her last words, and at last, the ship was out of earshot, leaving only Lillie and Hau waving at them. They waved back and Ash felt his grin stretch so wide, he couldn't stop it. He didn't know how long they were standing there, the ship vanishing on the horizon, but it was long enough that there was a chime from the airport, calling for boarding to their own flight.

"Well…guess it's goodbye to Alola," Clemont said, breathing in the ocean air. "Ready to go home, Bonnie? There'll be a lot we need to do before you start your journey."

"We'll do it! Back to Kalos!" Bonnie cheered. Ash looked back, seeing brother and sister take each other's hands and run off together. It reminded him of all they'd been through together in Alola, and how much they'd grown. Knowing that, he looked to his girlfriend as she continued to watch the fading spot of the ship.

"You know," he spoke, and she turned her body to him, "what I said to Lillie, about us seeing each other again, it's the same for us. No matter where we are, no matter how different our dreams are or where they take us, they'll bring us back together again."

"Yes," Serena said. The two looked at each other, the sound of the waves filling their ears as they did so. "I know we will. And when we do, maybe we'll be just like Lillie and Nebby with a family of our own."

"I'd like that!" Ash said. Without warning, his words appeared to have triggered something in Serena, because she stood forward and pressed her lips to his, the two remaining there, even as Pikachu leapt away and watched them with a smile. As they connected, Ash felt his mind play out all of their adventure. Their highs and lows, and everything in between. Every battle, meeting, encounter, performance, argument, and the sweet, tender moments that followed. No matter what it was, even with all the pain and confusion, Ash found himself glad to have been on such an adventure. Eventually, they separated. "You know, I think that's the kind of adventure I'd love to take with you."

"Of course! But there are a lot more adventures before then!" Serena giggled out, grabbing his hand and beginning to pull him along, straight for the airport. Ash couldn't help but laugh and smile, casting one last look to the ceaselessly beating waves.

Everything had been worth it, he realized, boarding the plane moments later. All the conflict, life, love, hate, growth, despair, hope, family…every bit of it was part of him. From one who doubted himself, to one who wanted to grow as a person; one who wanted to be stronger alone but had become stronger together, and one who had become serious. To a small bud that had blossomed into a beautiful flower. And to one who stopped bearing the burden of the world to share smiles with the one.

And especially for the Pokémon Master, who'd come to understand himself and others. That journey had been worth every second. Smiling at that with his best friend and the love of his life on his shoulder, staring out the windows of the plane to the endless sea, he knew he wouldn't trade any adventure with her or his family for anything.

And when the plane bound for home took off moments later, reducing the Pokémon Master's new friends, the ones that had changed his life immensely, to mere pinpricks down below, the feeling of a new lifelong adventure with Serena, no matter where they were, settled into Ash Ketchum's bones.

They said goodbye to Alola, at last, and flew onwards to their next adventures. Together.

THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: And so, here we are. The very end. There's no more of this trilogy. Quite honestly, this was the biggest undertaking I ever took on, to the point I wrote the trilogy in roughly 3 months. It was a blast, and difficult, and nearly destroyed me, but I believe I delivered the exact product that I wanted, and I hope you all enjoyed it, now that we're here at the end. In some sense, the final chapter title is very meta for the trilogy, as are Lillie's final words. They made me almost choke up to write them.
> 
> Now, the final chapter did deal with a lot, really cleaning up loose ends while having some ambiguous ones for the future, namely what becomes of TRio, but you're free to make your own assumptions…for now. Other than that, I hope you enjoyed everything else I did to fully wrap it up: Squishy is with Bonnie again, Guzma is on his road to redemption (and finally called Ash by his name), and Lillie has set off. Their adventure in Alola is over, as is ours.
> 
> However, the journey of the whole Ancienverse is not complete! I've hinted to many for a time that I had a final project as a fanfiction author to share, and now is the time to announce it! Because there will be a final installment of the Ancienverse: Love in the Time of Tomorrow!
> 
> First, there'll be oneshots, starting with one titled Fourths, Films and Forgiveness. I hope you'll enjoy it and join that final journey on the road to tomorrow. Now, speaking of:
> 
> Summary: Ancienverse True Finale. Following an unprecedented era of peace in the world, a new menace quickly arrives, threatening the balance once more. With the dying world on the edge of a knife, Ash and his allies make a stand against a foe with a deep personal hatred, and just as personal connections to their shared pasts, in the final war for the future of their world. Winner take all.
> 
> That said, we've currently reached the end of another adventure. I hope there is some measure of tears there, but if not, that's okay. I've been happy to take this adventure with you. So, one last time on this trilogy, for now and forever,
> 
> Dare to Be Silly,
> 
> Epicocity


End file.
